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takkupanda- The motherly Mama Coffee senses Marcelo's nervousness quite keenly, and talks gently to Marcelo, her mask-face expressing sympathy; "I imagine this is your first time being summoned by Afterlife Services. Please, do not worry! I would not have summoned you and your little friend if I did not think that we could reasonably help each other out. We aren't planning on turning you into a client anytime soon. We're already overbooked as it is." The Cofagrigus laughs at her own joke a bit before standing up, showing Marcelo and Broly to the door. "Really, the tasks I will be asking you to do should not be too difficult, even for a beginning trainer. In fact, I would complete them myself, but I have my hands full with these little ones as it is." Mama Coffee picks up a large, empty picnic basket before floating into the nursery, her voice taking on a much more quiet tone. "In the meantime, let me show you around a bit." Mama Coffee nods in the direction of the baby Yamask that line the walls. "This is the nursery. We should not stay here long. These infant spirits need their sleep." The Cofagrigus ushers Marcelo and Broly onward; unfortunately for Marcelo, the emergency exit has been boarded up, with a pastel sign written in Yamask language hung over the boards. A cartoon picture of Mama Coffee is painted below the writing to the right, with a little Yamask by a door labeled "EXIT" appearing to be asking Mama Coffee something. To the left of that drawing is a picture of a Yamask leaving by itself with a red X through it. It appears that this sign is telling the Yamask that they have to ask permission before they can leave. Apparently, the same goes for Marcelo...

Mama Coffee and her two living guests enter the playroom; all of the Yamask greet Mama Coffee in Yamask language before resuming their playtime. The Cofagrigus says something back in her own Cofagrigus dialect, but Marcelo cannot understand a word of it. Mama Coffee then tells him what he already knows; this is the playroom, where the little ghosts enjoy playing games from their past while getting used to their new bodies and new languages. "The process is very difficult. Time moves much more slowly for the dead, since we have all the time in the world, really... We have no lifespan - we do not develop as humans do. The closest my little ones can get to such a process is honing their skills through battle. Let me show you..." The Cofagrigus then opens a panel in the playroom, and ushers Marcelo and Broly through the opening. Inside, what appears to be a kiddie arena can be found, where paintings of joyful-looking Cofagrigus line the walls in cheering poses, as if encouraging the Yamask to spar in order to attain these forms. "This is our arena. We use it to help the little ones train against each other, and grow strong." The Cofagrigus face smiles. "We usually let them go once they evolve, though a particularly strong Yamask may also leave the daycare if they show that they are ready to take on the world." The Yamask nods. "Your final task will take place here... but let's not rush things." The Cofagrigus floats beside the arena, sitting down at the low-sitting bleachers before indicating to Marcelo and Broly that they should both take a seat beside her. "Your first task is actually quite simple, but very important to our daycare. It may not be the most exciting in the world, but you would be doing us a great help." Mama Coffee gives Marcelo a long look before continuing, as if trying to impress upon him the importance of this task. "The berry bushes we planted outside the station have been picked clean, and they will not sprout again for a few more days... The little ones need berries to grow, and will become restless without sustenance. I have heard that there are still berry bushes growing near the Merry-go-Round; if you could pick a basketful of berries for us, we would greatly appreciate it." She holds out the empty picnic basket for Marcelo to take. "Will you do this for us?"

How will Marcelo respond?

Mama coffee noticed how uncomfortable Marcelo was getting in this ghastly place and tried to ease his nervousness a bit. She mentioned that she was doing this for their mutual benefit and also that Marcelo won't be one of the "clients" of the Afterlife Services. This helped Marcelo recover from the fear noticeably. She then started the tour by showing them mostly places they had already seen and guessed what they would be. There was the nursery where the infants were getting some sleep. Then there was the playroom on the way to which Marcelo saw a boarded up emergency exit and another small door with an EXIT sign and a picture which said that the Yamask shouldn't go out without permission.

Then they went into the playroom where Mama Coffee explained what Marcelo had already realized. The Yamask kids did not have a defined lifespan and also did not grow like humans do. But what Marcelo hadn't realized was that the best way for them to grow was through the experience they get from battles as they were Pokemon now. They then entered the arena where the Yamask would train by battling against each other. Thinking about battles cheered Marcelo's spirits up as he loved battling alongside his Pokemon which would also help them grow. She mentioned that the final task she would assign would be here and Marcelo was excited as he realized that would have something to do with a Pokemon battle. But first, she assigned them the task of picking a basketful of berries from some berry bushes close to the Merry-Go-Round. Marcelo was so excited that he said "Okay!" straight away with a broad grin. But then he remembered the creepy looking Merry-Go-Round he had seen in the Haunted Park and his heartbeat accelerated again. After thinking for a moment and realizing how nice this ghost had been to them, he thought that maybe it was not a good idea to deny her request. He then gently took the basket from her hand and said, "Don't worry... we will get the berries as fast as we can!" Broly wagged his tail in agreement and they started on their way, only to realize that they did not know how to get out of that place. Turning back towards Mama Coffee, Marcelo asked, "Could you please show us the way out from here?"

Balmund- Balmund is quick to take William's advice, and soon finds himself making similar attempts to blend in to his new surroundings. Perceiving that the pair may be facing a serious time crunch with the threat of the Guardians discovering their presence, Balmund decides on an option that will be both quick and delicious. William nods in agreement with Balmund's choice. "Pika-Pizza it is, man! ONWARD!" William points forward with an exaggerated war-face and puffed-out chest, as if parodying a powerful general marching into battle. With William's amusing battle cry leading the two men forward, Balmund finds himself outside the Rollerquaza ride, though his surroundings are very different than when he first decided to put his courage to the test; the park is bright, cheerful and very loud, with hoardes of people swarming towards rides, strolling the boulevards with sweets and snacks, and taking their Pokemon out to enjoy a wonderful time at the park. Posters advertise various rides and attractions with plentiful smiling faces and over-excited phrasing. Many posters feature park mascots such as Petey and Penny Pika, the male and female electric rodents whose faces seem to be everywhere. They are joined by Nutty the Houndour and his pet dog, Neptune the Poochyena... One wonders why a dog mascot would have its own dog for a pet, but that was another mystery for another time. Dolan Ducklett's derpy face seems to be everywhere, too... What was that guy's appeal, anyway?

As the two men walk towards concessions, William turns to Balmund, appearing somewhat curious. "Say, Duke, you wouldn't happen to be a trainer, would you? I really hope you have some brutes in that pocket of yours..." He pauses for a moment, as if trying to cover up his concern, "Y'know, so we can battle sometime! My Haxorus, man, she'll pound you into the DUST." He laughs a bit, though something in his eyes seems strangly wistful. "Averil's been my best fighter ever since she was an Axew. Y'know, man, I always loved dragon types since I was little. The thing is, I ain't the type'a person who should be trainin' em. Dragon trainers are supposed to be honest, noble people. It's kinda ironic... the only reason I even have my Pokemon is 'cause I stole it from some dude when I was a Team Rocket lackey, back when I was younger'n you." He shakes his head, chuckling darkly. "Can't say I regret it any. She's noble and strong for the both of us, y'know. Best Pokemon a man could ask for." He stares in the direction of the Ghost Train and mutters, "I know she'll do her best, no matter what happens. We both have a lot riding on this... no pun intended."

Eventually, the two men make it to Pika Pizza; the stand is easy to spot by its large, yellow banner, with Petey Pika dressed like a chef, presenting Penny Pika with a pizza covered in heart-shaped pepperoni as Penny swoons over the marvolous looking meal. William checks his watch and nods. "We've got about two hours until the train leaves the Main Station." The two men step in line; fortunately, it seems as if the line is not only short, but moving quickly, as well. "I'll be covering the both of us, if you don't mind, Sir Duke." William laughs. "It's not a date'r anything, though. Don't get too excited." He laughs as he approaches the counter. "I'd like a Pika-Pepperoni special, a large Corsola Cola, and... uh, what kinda pizza do you like, Duke?" He turns to Balmund, awaiting his response.

Balmund makes his order (whatever it may be), and each man grabs a tray as they slide down the line, awaiting their meals. After picking up their respective orders, William finds a free table for the two of you to sit. William bites into the molten-hot gooey lava of mozzarella goodness the moment he sits down; between bites, he says, "Man, this stuff is good. Haven't had pizza from Pika-Pizza in years... S'good to have it again."

Balmund still cannot shake the feeling that he is being watched, though his observers still seem to be watching from a distance.

How does Balmund respond?

William certainly looked glad by Balmund's choice, and really, what sane person ever give sup the chance for a quick and delicious pizza? As William marches forward with intentionally exaggerated and amusing antics, Balmund can't help but to chuckle and mimic his behavior. It was all about blending in, and what better way to blend in such place than by simply enjoying oneself? It wasn't that much of a hard task either as the park now looked and feeled vastly different than its abandoned and haunted counterpart; hoardes of people swarming to and fro along with their Pokémon. Balmund had never really been to an amusement park before, though he sure nagged his parents to bring him over when he was a child. Though the wish was never fulfilled back then, Balmund was more than glad to have a taste now, if not a mouthful, of what he had missed during his entire life. It was all about colors, family and fun; a thing which he would certainly want to share to his Pokémon. And just as he was thinking about, William brought up the question.

Looking curious, William asks if Balmund carried some tough brutes within his pockets, surely so they could "battle some time". While a proposal he would definitely consider, Balmund figured the purpose of his question was related more to the strange entities that guarded this place than anything else. The mention of a Haxorus really got his attention though. From the very few moments they had got to meet, Balmund already thought could make a close friend of the man, and now knowing he too had a passion for Dragon-types, his initial feeling was further reinforced. His mention of him having stolen the Axew when he was but a Team Rocket grunt many years ago was reason for concern, but it didn't really came as a surprise to Balmund; he had figured Will would have at least done such a thing if not worse during his though life, and he didn't really judge him for the actions he had commited during his past, all that matters is what you do about your present and future. While indeed dragon tamers are supposed to be honest and noble people as they creatures they raised themselves, Balmund had always thought of himself as a true neutral. Being owner of Pokémon of such contrasting natures, it was this stance that had always helped him play the role of a mediator between them. Maybe it was this open-mindedness and ability to see things from different angles that to uncover the good behind them that made him "noble", but he wasn't one to label himself like so. William may have left a trainer deprived of the better part of him/herself back then, but Averil had apparently forgiven and even grown to love her captor, and that, was a good enough sign for Balmund.

"I think you're the perfect person for her, William. It is said that a Dragon chooses his ideal owner; just having one isn't enough, they have to acknowledge you, and the fact that she's been the best she could be for you should be enough proof that you're the best you could be for her." Balmund said, turning to him with a kind and sympathetic smile. "I should know, I'm from Blackthorn myself, and we sure know a thing or two about dragons. My brutes are as though as they look. We definitely have to battle sometime, by the way! My Salamence will give Averil the fight of her life!" He laughs out loud.

Eventually making it to the famed Pika Pizza, they quickly move in line, which was fortunately short and fast-moving. William mentions they still had about two hours until the Ghost Train leaved the station, and while that amount of time would fly by in a breeze, Balmund figured that rushing to the final destination would just provoke something unpleasant.

"I sure don't mind, kind sir, the more for me!" Balmund chuckled as Will offered to cover the expenses. "I would like a Meatlover's Delight, and a large Fizzy Bubbleh, please." He said to the employee after Will ordered. Soon enough, they find themselves sitting down to gorge up in their heavenly cheesy meal. It would be so much better if Balmund could shake the feeling that they were being watched from afar. This isn't a time to get nervous yet though, and instead, he took the opportunity to chat with him a little, choosing his words wisely to figure more about him and this place without raising suspicion.

"That long, huh? I haven't been here ever, but this stuff is amazing; I think I might get another one, no kidding. Well worth the long months saving up for this vacation! Say Will, how was your visit last time, by the way?" Balmund felt he could trusts Will's verbal subtlety, and he looked forward to hearing what clues he could pick up from his response.

You try and dig through the wooden floor of the strange room. Hopeless to do it yourself, you ordered Krabby to break through the floor. "Use AncientPower! Use Crossfire! Do something!" Krabby clicked twice, and proceeded to do so. You step back away from the center of the room, hoping Krabby can break through. After a while, you start to hear explosions from underneath. The wooden floor started to rise up, then they start snapping. Krabby was doing it! Bright lights emerged out of the cracks, and they got brighter and wider as Krabby continued to attack. Then, a loud explosion caused the whole room to shake, knocking you back unconscious again.

***

You'll never get out of my grasp, poor Hugo. The Mismagius' voice was deafening, even if she was only whispering. Fighting it will only make it worse. Just give in to me, and I'll put you to rest.

You awaken once more, this time in a city bench. The sun couldn't be seen from all the skyscrapers, but you can tell it was morning from the clear blue sky up above. You sit up, looking at the traffic and the honking of the cars. Pedestrians walk from all directions. It was all too confusing for you. You barely remember what had happened before waking up here. Slowly losing grasp of what was real and what was illusion. Then, you remember the room, and how Krabby almost got to you.

Click.

The click was very distant, but you know exactly where he was. You stand up, and tried to listen for another click. But as you stood up, it triggered something. The blue sky immediately turned a hazy purple. Traffic stopped, and so did all noise. The pedestrians stopped at once, and faced at you. You notice that none of them had faces. Then, they start coming for you. Climbing over the cars, jumping off windows, just to get to you.

Quick thinking is necessary, Hugo. What will you do next?

The blinding pain of the migraine sears through Hugo’s brain. He sees the faceless pedestrians coming for him. In fear, he turns and begins running down one of the streets. But the street just appears to be getting longer and longer with each step. He seems to be going nowhere, while the faceless mob inches closer and closer toward him.

“KRABBY! WHERE ARE YOU?! HELP ME!” he shouts desperately.

The click of Krabby’s claw echoes through his brain. Hugo desperately tried to open any door to nearby cars or houses. All of them locked. All the while the crowd was upon him.

“Hold it together, Hugo” he said to himself. “It’s an illusion. It’s not real. It’s a dream.”

A dream. Hugo recalled a very long movie involving Leonardo DiCaprio where people could control what happens in their dreams.

“Maybe…maybe I can fight them off. Maybe I can…maybe I can use AncientPower! Or Crossfire! Or Bubblebeam! Maybe I can do it all!”

Hugo could feel his grip on reality getting looser and looser by the second. He could try to run, but they would find him.

Rotom310: You look on in horror as Salazar fires off a Poison Sting at the floating man. He lets out a deep chuckle and throws his arms forward. The fireballs burn through the Poison Sting, and continue straight towards Salazar. Your partner jumps out of the way, just managing to be seared into oblivion.

"I said leave!" the man thundered.

He roared and his entire body went up in flames, the hallway starting to become incredibly hot. You back away, and turn to run away when you realise that the man is between you and the way down. Crap. What on earth are you going to do to get out of this. Well the answer to that comes to you in the way of a giant man crashing through the wall. The man barrels into the floating one, and considering that he doesn't go right through him, you guess that he isn't a ghost afterall.

"Come on!" someone suddenly yells at you.

You turn your attention towards the giant hole in the hallway and see a... bright red woman. She motions for you to go with her, but you did have your reservations. Because you know, she seems to have something to do with the man who threatened you... and because she is literally bright red.

What will you do?

"Salazar... what the hell are you doing..." Drew couldn't help but pale as he saw his serpent slither forward and fire a spray of poisonous needles at the possible apparition. Once the man laughed heartily and thre his fireballs straight at the Poison Sting, burning them into ashes, Drew grew even paler. Salazar was equally shocked, and a quick jump to the side barely kept him from joining his attack's fate.

"I said leave!" the man boomed, and suddenly the hallway was awash with light as his entire body caught fire. A wave of heat hit Drew as the flaming man warmed the hallway.

"Oh god... Salazar, come on!" Drew yelled as he reached out an arm to the snake, letting him slither up to his usual perch. As Drew turned around to run, he couldn't help but notice that Salazar was coiled quite tighter than normal- oh god. The trainer let out a string of obscenities when he realized too late that the fire-man was blocking his only known way down.

"It's official, I'm going to die. I'm going to totally die now," Drew said, rather calmly considering the situation. "Trapped between a floating guy on fire and a hard place. Man, the guys at the bar would never believe this-"

Suddenly, interupting the photographer's last sentences, a giant crashed through the wall.

Drew was shocked speechless as the giant barreled toward the flaming man, plowing him over. Well, at least I know it wasn't an actual ghost, Drew thought, though he could help but think how bittersweet that was, being an amateur paranormal investigator.

"Come on!" a voice rang out from behind him.

Turning his attention away from the giant man, Drew focused on a giant hole in the wall, something he somehow failed to notice before. Even if he had seen the hole earlier, he knew he hadn't seen the woman standing in the opening. A woman with skin that bright shade of red would certainly of left an impression on him.

She beckoned him to follow. Deep in his mind whatever voice of logic that hadn't already been scared into submission told him that would be a stupid move. Instinct told him that the woman probably had something to do with the flaming man; people this unnatural had to have some connection, right?

Drew glanced back to where the giant had rammed into the man on fire, and then back at the woman standing in the hole in the wall. "I must be completely crazy," he said, and stepped toward the woman.

Emp- The Minotaur stared at you, watching your every move. It breathed slowly, and for a brief moment, there was silence.

“I want you to pull out all the tricks to slow it down this time. Start out with a Cotton Spore followed by another dose of Sleep Powder. Then try and tangle its legs up in a Leech Seed as we run past him and make a break for it!” The Minotaur charged with incredible speed at you, disregarding the Tangrowth. But that was his mistake. As he charged towards you, Tangrowth opened fire with Cotton Spore, making the Minotaur slow down to a halt. He shook his head, trying not to sniff in the cotton, but soon he could barely move. The beast roared in anger, as his muscles contracted and lost his maneuverability. Tangrowth didn't stop there, and gave him a Sleep Powder, which brought him to his knees. Finally, Tangrowth planted Seeds all over his body, which wrapped the monster in vines that Leeched off his energy. It was time to make a run for it!

You head towards the tunnel where the Minotaur was originally running from, and you could see bent pipes everywhere. Hot steam blew out the pipes from time to time, and some clanking of metal could be heard. Red lights flashed from time to time, and there was probably a small alarm system going off in the control room right now.

After a couple of minutes limping, you hear the roar from behind. The sound vibrated the tubes even up to where you were right now, and charging footsteps could be heard once more, only slower than before. The plan worked, but hopefully you can make it somewhere safe in time.

You close in on a two way route. One route goes to a deeper tunnel going down, another going up and to the left. But, you notice another thing to your right. It was a thick metallic door that had a label on it, only it was too dusty to read. You wipe of the dust and could make out: SEW-R

Which way will you go, and what actions will you take, Wes?

Wes’s eyes darted to their one and only chance of escape, a gigantic minotaur blocking his path, hooves scuffing against the rollercoaster debris. There was a sharp twinge still throbbing in his leg that’d nearly been crushed by the disaster. He’d have to limp on it from here on out, slimming his chances of escape even further. The kid swallowed dryly, mustering up a set of orders in hopes of slowing the monster down. Just as his voice broke the tense silence, the minotaur took this as a signal to charge, clopping loudly toward Wes who was flinching in fear. Luckily for the trainer the monster had shrugged off the Mojumbo with eyes focused squarely on him. This was a mistake as the Tangrowth started shaking his shaggy vines causing a flurry of Cotton Spores to spill out like dandruff, the half-bull cantering to a halt with his hindlegs cramping. The beast howled ballistically, its face contorting as it could barely move a muscle. Wes got on his mark and ready to leg it – Mojumbo following up with another dose of narcotic dust. The bluish Sleep Powders enveloped the monster, a muffled snort booming ahead as his legs buckled. Rounding off their immobilizing efforts, the shaggy caveman spat out a Seed that ricocheted off the beast’s flank, snaring him in a net of vines and sapping away some of his energy. It was time to make a break for it.

Hopes starting to rise the kid set off on his good leg, dragging his other along to a great deal of pain. He was shambling through the tunnel where he’d first heard the terrifying minotaur, the bent copper pipes and piles of rubble a mark of his stampede. Scalding vapour sprayed from a few of the pipelines to the sound of a boiling kettle, Wes ducking narrowly to avoid any sweltering spray. The dingy channel was alive with the racket of clanking metal and Wes spotted a few red lights flickering to no doubt signal ‘DANGER’. A few minutes had passed and Wes’s heart had started to beat normally, he only wished he could phase out the throbbing pain in his leg. Mojumbo offered to carry the trainer over his shoulder, but Wes declined. He needed to stay sharp in case any more danger lurked ahead, and they weren’t out of the woods just yet.

ROAR!

Wes flinched, staggering slightly as he landed on his bad leg in a funny angle. Tangrowth’s pale eyes widened, he’d been sure that his exhaustive barrage spores would buy them a lot more time than it had. The clopping was getting closer, but Wes could tell the drugs hadn’t worn off just yet as he wasn’t in full-gallop. Wes upped his pace again, Mojumbo ambling protectively in tow. With perfect timing, the kid came across a split in the tunnel. Before mulling over his options, he caught the glint of a metal door to his right with the word SEW-R scrawled dustily upon it. Wes didn’t need to think long and hard to realise this probably led to the theme park’s sewage system – a mucky escape route indeed.

“Listen carefully Mojumbo because here’s what I need you to do: let off a Sweet Scent down the leftmost tunnel, that ought to keep him off our scent and send him on a false track whilst we escape through here”, he reasoned, pointing at the entrance with a faint smirk, “I doubt whatever’s following us can even fit through the doorframe. Let’s go!” The huge plant nodded unquestionably. Wes knew Mojumbo would hate the polluted backdrop, but he didn’t have any time to reason. With one last breath of clean air, Wes clutched ahold of the door handle with one bold twist.

((I am SO sorry for the delay, everyone! On the positive side, I have a month to rest and relax starting today, so expect frequent updates for July. Enjoy~!!))

uhhhhh- Connor is beginning to realize the truth behind the horrifying vision in the mirror. The cruel, inhuman murderer depicted as choking the life out of Connor was not the little 'floon at all. It is plain to see by its newly demonic aspects that the true culprit is actually the eerie little gift he received from the Balloon Man, which now glares with vicious eyes towards the man, monkey and 'floon. In fact, it seems as if the short-tempered Drifloon, despite its insults and impatience, was actually trying to help Connor and Gaspard avoid a gristly fate... One the little balloon Pokemon likely knew all too well. Gaspard is particularly pumped-up for this battle, and seems to be in absolute top fighting form; Connor is surprised by the fervor and viciousness with which his companion jumps into battle. For Gaspard, this is the ultimate test of loyalty: protecting one's trainer from certain death. Gaspard is not about to let his trainer down. Not by a long shot.

Before the evil balloon can attempt to attack the interfering Drifloon, Gaspard closes the gap between him and the demonic creature with a well-timed Pursuit, which knocks a decent-sized hole in the balloon's rubber. Drifloon, hoping to take advantage of the opening, dives at the creature with his giant scissors; before it is able to Cut the hole wider; however, the balloon unleashes a monstrous Whirlwind, which knocks Drifloon straight down the corridor and into the mirror on the other side. The Drifloon bounces back fairly unscathed, but has been knocked a considerable distance away from the battle. Meanwhile, Gaspard tries his luck at another Pursuit. This time, the hole it produces in the rubber is considerably smaller than his previous attack. Turning its attentions toward Gaspard, the demon cackles maniacally before the tiny hole Gaspard made bursts open, turning into a wide gash. From the gash, a dark substance leaks out, seeping into Gaspard before he can even defend himself. It seems as if the demon was successful laying a vicious Curse on the monkey. As Drifloon floats as fast as it can back to the battle, it calls out to Connor and Gaspard in its airy voice; We have to break apart the rubber, it shouts, as Gaspard unleashes a Fire Punch directly into the rubber. The smell of burned rubber fills the air as the area around the hole created by the punch slowly burns. Unfortunately, it seems as if the demon can use this fire to his advantage, and responds by blasting back an Ember towards Gaspard. The monkey howls out in pain as he is his square in the chest by the flames, but recovers quickly from the burning attack. Suddenly, Gaspard appears to be sick, as the dark substance that previously emanated from the demon balloon now seeps out of his mouth, draining his health. Connor senses that if the balloon is not taken out quickly, Gaspard will succumb to the Curse, whatever it may be...

As Drifloon attempts to re-enter the fray, he is stopped by Connor's question. What do you think is the Drifloon's irritated response, before once again diving at the balloon with his scissors. This time, his attack is effective in snipping the rubber between two holes apart, creating a single, larger one.

The structure of the demon is still in-tact, though there are some rather large holes on the balloon's left side.

What will Connor and Gaspard do?

Meetan- With the thieving Purrloin distracted by Swinub, Alice takes the opportunity to dismount the mechanical Rapidash and grab her berry bag. Fortunately, the Purrloin remains distracted by the battle, leaving Alice free and clear to reclaim her berry collection and return it to its rightful place. As she does this, she orders her Swinub to perform an Odor Sleuth so that Swinub will be able to more easily identify the Purrloin's scent, and be able to follow the creature not only using sight, but smell as well. The piglike Pokemon takes in the air around him with a long, hard sniff from his adorable piggy nose, and the confident look in his eyes seems to indicate that he's locked on to Purrloin's unique olfactory signature. Purrloin notices immediately that her opponent does not seem to be attacking at the moment, though he seems to be preparing for something; unsure of the pig's intentions, she once again Growls at Swinub, as if to warn him against trying anything funny; unfortunately for Purrloin, her attempt at a wicked snarl is foiled as she ends up coughing up a hairball! Groooss. Swinub uses this opportunity to scurry off of the Rapidash to get at some ground in order to perform a Mud Slap, though the fall from the Rapidash is not executed perfectly, and Swinub seems to have taken a bit of damage from landing awkwardly. The Rapidash winces at the fall, asking, "Are you okay, pardner?" Swinub responds with a strong, determined "Swin" and gets right back up, and uses his snout to push up dirt and mud from the ground and fling it towards his attacker. Though the dirt and mud misses Purrloin's eyes, it hits her square in the chest, doing a bit of damage and knocking her off the Rapidash, as well. The Purrloin chooses to respond with an attack that matches her mood, as she attempts to furiously rip the Swinub apart with Fury Swipes; however, Swinub is particularly quick on his feet now that he's back on the ground, and he is fortunately able to dodge out of the way! As Swinub prepares to hit Purrloin with a chilly blast of Icy Wind, Purrloin runs at top speed towards her oppoent, as if she was going to ram herself directly into him... Swinub immediately stops his attack and braces for impact, only to find himself completely fooled by a Fake Out. As he flinches from the attack that never comes, he leaves himself wide open to Purrloin's Scratch, which Purrloin manages to pull off right across Swinub's super-sensitive nose! The poor creature howls in pain, having taken a hard hit.

Purrloin and Swinub now seem to be equally damaged, at roughly three-fifths of their original health. Swinub no longer seems to be effected by Purrloin's previous Tormenting. The mechanical Rapidash urges Swinub on, saying things like, "I know y'can do it, kiddo! Show that varmint who's the real sheriff 'round these parts!"

How will Meetan respond?

Dark Searchman- Hyrem seems to be drowning in a sea of broken promises; the love and warmth of his Pokemon, the safety of his new Frillish friend and, indeed, his very life all seem to be floating away from him, and he is stuck, riveted to a fate he never would have chosen for himself, unable to chase after those hopes and dreams of the past. One of the zombie children breaks from the semicircle chain in order to retrieve something as Hyrem's mind swims with frantic thoughts. Though it all seems hopeless, Hyrem resolves not to give up; if not for his own life, then for the lives of his Pokemon. His decision, for now, is to play along with the zombie children's game, in hopes that he may persuade them to help him out of this dreadful situation. Hyrem decides to agree to telling a story, only if they will agree to help him with something. Tell your story first, Breather. It is an honor to have eyes so coveted by our Lady. We want to know why... What stories did your eyes tell her? What visions in this short life of yours have you seen? Realizing Hyrem's reluctance to share any information with her without the promise of help, the zombie child eventually sighs and remits. Tell us a story, and we will help you with whatever you may need... Though I must tell you, once you become one of us, you will need for nothing.

The zombie child who previously left the circle returns with a jar full of seawater, and stands to Hyrem's left, as if waiting for something to happen. Good, you are prepared, the female zombie hisses to the jar-holding child. Another child floats to Hyrem's right side quickly, as if also wanting to appear as prepared as the jar-holder, and cups her hands underneath Hyrem's eyes. The girl holding Hyrem down chuckles a bit, and urges Hyrem to go on with his story. As he relates the tale of a boy and his Ralts going on magnificant adventures, including the capture of a marvelous Chinchou, the children listen intently, mirroring the emotions of the story's protagonist in their faces as Hyrem relates the joys and sorrows of his journey. The story makes Hyrem long for old and new friends alike, as he thinks back to his beloved companions. Hyrem finds that as he speaks, it becomes easier and easier to talk in this underwater environment. It's almost as if his talking is encouraging the process to work faster. Hyrem's eyes begin to ache... He is beginning to feel diz-

AAAUGH! The zombie girl suddenly cries out in horrific pain as Hyrem feels himself being loosened from the girl's grip. The other zombies have returned to the state of rage that Hyrem witnessed them in previously, their attention completely fixed on their leader and whatever happened to cause her to cry out. They shout angry, incomprehensible blather at what Hyrem presumes to be the attacker; unable to resist his curiosity, Hyrem turns his head a bit to face the mysterious interference in the strange ceremony he seemed to be trapped in; who would have the bravery to go after a hoarde of eerie, rotted children?

As Hyrem turns, he comes face to face with a little blue jellyfish that appears to be trembling; it is hard to tell if the creature is trembling out of rage, fear or both. The Frillish's eyes are red with an ominous, ghostly power. Whatever he had done to make the little girl let go, it must have been quite the attack. When Frillish meets Hyrem's gaze, he makes a motion with one of his tentacles for Hyrem to run (or swim, as the case may be) away from here. Of course, Hyrem would never be the type to abandon his jelly friend, especially after the feelings of guilt he experienced after Frillish's first disappearance; however, it appears that Frillish is not alone. The dark, dank sea behind Frillish is alight with red eyes that match his own, which appear to be advancing quickly towards the group of zombies. Where on earth did these creatures come from? Why-

BROTHER, I WILL SILENCE YOU, the zombie leader screams as she pulls a Pokeball from her belt. The other zombies all seem similarly equipped. Including the leader, there are seven zombies in total, and there's no telling what might be in those Pokeballs... Frillish may seem to have a small army backing him, but Hyrem may have a difficult time leaving his companion to fend for himself given the circumstances. Then again, the zombification process seems to be advancing quickly as time progresses, and Hyrem will need every second in order to figure out how to reverse the curse that has befallen him.

What will Hyrem do?

gmoyes- ((I think it's a good thing that you write long responses, too! The more detailed your responses are, the more I have to work with when I write my updates, which helps. Don't worry about the time it takes; I think every updatee has their own pace and their own style and I want to encourage that.))

As much as Alex would desperately like to RUN AWAY, it seems as if the risks associated with that option are far too great for Alex to even consider it seriously. Endure may not be an attack option in this generation of games, but it seems as if Alex will have to learn the technique quickly, since his choice will force him to endure whatever horrible consequences may befall him for letting his clone carry him into Lavender Tower. The sound effect of a door opening and closing rings through Alex's ears as they cross the threshold.

As is customary when traveling between different parts of the game, the world turns black for a moment; it is in that moment that Porygon Alex senses that something is dreadfully wrong (as if this whole situation wasn't dreadfully wrong already). First of all, the music isn't starting up again. A strange silence has consumed the world in which Alex and Clone Alex have been traveling. Eventually, the Pokemon Tower "loads," but it is not the familiar purple lobby-like area of the games; there is no receptionist, or man sobbing about his Clefairy, or even walls or a floor. Instead, the entire area is a swirl of disparate pixels, textures, colors and paths that lead everywhere and nowhere, both real and unreal; textures you recall from the real world (fabric, stone, etc.) and their near-infinite range of colors and shading mesh with low-resolution versions of the same objects at odd and impossible angles, with an overall effect more confusing and mind-bending than any M.C. Escher painting or "impossible" shape Alex has ever encountered. This is no ordinary glitch; it is as if the real world and the world within the Game Boy have somehow joined in this place. Standing in the center of this utter madness is the protagonist of the game himself, still and quiet amidst the vortex of odd and distorted sights. Red appears completely unaltered by the glitch around him, though Porygon Alex can somehow sense a sadness emanating from the 8-bit hero. The black dots which comprise his eyes seem to focus on Alex with incredible intensity for a couple of black dots stuck together. Alex notices immediately that this Red does not seem to have the white, soulless eyes of the previous "Red" he encountered, the aura around him still makes Alex feel dreadfully uneasy.

"You won't get away with this!" Red's text box could not be more cliche, and yet Alex senses that the pixelated Red is painfully aware of how silly and meaningless these words are. "Don't make me laugh," Clone Alex responds, as he pushes Alex forward until the Porygon finds himself trapped beside the eerily melancholy Red. Setting Alex's white Pokeball beside Red, Clone Alex begins ascending into the air as pieces of the disjointed world form a transient staircase for him to climb, pieces disappearing as soon as he steps off of each makeshift platform. As Clone Alex ascends, he becomes less pixelated and more realistic, until finally, he is the spitting image of Alex in the real world; the moment this occurs, he vanishes into thin air, and the impossibly altered dimension suddenly returns to the original Pokemon Tower, complete with music, light purple pixels and familiar sprites. A boy and his newly-acquired Porygon stand alone in an electronic wasteland, with seemingly no way out.

Pixel Red turns toward Alex, staring at him for a moment before finally acknowledging him with a text box; "A Porygon, huh? How oddly appropriate..." Pixel Red pauses for a moment before launching into a series of statements. "...Can you speak? Do you know a way out of here? Do you know how they made that portal? Do you have any ideas at all? Please, please tell me! That FREAK has my Pokemon, and with my body... I don't even want to think about it! The damage they'll cause! PLEASE!" The barrage of text is relentless and difficult to read, as if someone is pressing A rapidly through a long dialog, hoping to get to the important plot points.

Alex can't be sure who this "pixel Red" might really be, or what his intentions are, but it certainly seems as if he's trying to get out of this situation just as desperately as Alex is. He may not know a way out, but he may know something about this world that Alex doesn't... Alex may ask questions or attempt to provide answers, but the situation is clear; if there's a way out, the two will have to find it using what they know about the game.

Shadowshocker- Contrasting with Scherza's loud and merry chirps, Dahlia seethes under her breath, muttering a string of curses at her opponent. Concerned by the damaging status effects Dahlia seems to be taking in her first match, Shadow tries to ease her pain somewhat with a Pecha berry. Unfortunately, the timing for this action couldn't have been worse; as Dahlia attempts to chomp down the berry quickly, the Chandelure appears to be charging up flames for a powerful attack; as Dahlia is just about to finish her berry, Chandelure unleashes a deadly Fire Spin towards the Murkrow, hoping to trap her within the vortex and slowly burn her into submission. Though Dahlia is able to fly enough away to miss the center of the vortex and avoid being trapped within it, she is heavily side-swiped by the flames, her left claw taking the full brunt of the burning cyclone. The claw itself appears black and charred, and Shadow wonders if this burned foot may make it more difficult for Dahlia to land during the battle. Of course, she is still motivated by enough pure, unadulterated rage to keep flying for miles if it means revenge on her opponent, so despite the painful setback, she still attempts a Pursuit of her opponent in attempt to close the distance between the two; her anger propelling her, she even manages to hit the Chandelure square in one of his candles with her sharp beak. The Chandelure yelps a bit, as that candle completely extinguishes. He reflexively insubstantiates into nothingness, leaving Dahlia's attempts at following up her attack with a Sucker Punch completely useless, as she essentially flies through the air. It seems as if the Chandelure was hoping not to directly damage the furious Murkrow this round, but to disorient and confuse her; he immediately fires off a Confuse Ray in the direction of the dark-type, hoping to successfully disorient the bird as he did previously. This time, however, Dahlia is able to shut her eyes before the light completely overwhelms her; though her eyesight after re-opening them is a bit hazy for a second or two, she appears to have been unaffected by the mind-melting light. As if to show off her own power, Dahlia responds with a Confuse Ray of her own; not expecting his own attack coming back at him, the Chandelure is blinded by Dahlia's hate-filled ray, and now floats about aimlessly, bashing into corners and pillars as he tries to navigate the lobby.

Both combatants are significantly wearing down; however, Dahlia currently has the advantage. If Shadow can utilize this opportunity to its full potential, he may be able to lead his battered, burnt companion to victory.

How will Shadow respond?

MarbleZone- With poor Min at wit's end, Levin decides to withdraw the frightened chinchilla in favor of a Pokemon with a bit more machismo; that manly essence comes in the form of a small Elekid, who is so unphased by his eerie environs that he seems to want to go off exploring himself! Reigning him in so that he can stay safe, Levin senses that Crix would be dissatisfied and may even disobey if asked to simply run away like a coward; however, Levin can't shake the feeling that the "guest" descending to the lobby may be more than the little Elekid can handle. Compromising between Crix's thirst for adventure and Levin's increasing desire for self-preservation, Levin physically guides Crix's head in to a ducking position as the two hide behind the counter, like two spies sneaking around enemy territory. Where's Otacon when you need him?

As the two assume sneaking position, the elevator arrives on the ground floor with a ding, which is soon followed by the double doors gradually opening to reveal their passanger. Levin is surprised (and likely relieved) that the young woman who gently strides out of the elevator indeed appears alive, though she is certainly a sight to behold; she is dressed in a gorgeous, floor-length black velvet gown with intricate embroidery in white and black thread lining the collar and sleeves; small, shimmering crystals accentuate the embroidery, and even seem to have been pinned carefully into her exquisitely-weaved updo of glistening, brunette locks that would likely extend past her waist without such intricate and extensive pinning. Her face is covered in what appears to be stage-makeup, and she is humming to herself as she enters the lobby. The hum is barely audible, yet it awakens something within Levin's heart that is difficult to describe... "An intense feeling of longing" does not begin to do it justice. Deep within the pit of his soul, something... aching stirs, as if some previously unacknowledged emptiness within himself was swelling with the melody and threatening to engulf the rest of his being... Heartbreak, sorrow, regret... What could possibly be happening to cause such a strange, melancholic feeling?

The young woman takes a short look around the lobby before turning to her right, standing like a statue, staring for awhile as if expecting something to appear. Perhaps she is simply caught in a deep reverie; however, after a few moments, something does seem to appear where her gaze has been transfixed... A man in fancy attire with long, messy black hair materializes out of thin air beside her, never fully reaching solid consistancy. "Oh, Calandra..." He mutters, a large grin on his face. "You look absolutely ravishing. The crowd is going to go completely wild before you even open your mouth, my dear!" The spectre places his ghostly hands on her shoulders, beaming with pride at his still-living companion.

"Thank you..." The woman blushes as she responds, her voice small and difficult to hear. "I don't know about that, but thank you. It's sweet of you to say."

"It's true, darling! I wouldn't say it if it wasn't true." He smiles. "Now, surely you want to warm up before your big performance, don't you?" The ghostly man gives her shoulders a light squeeze, nodding towards her as if trying to encourage her.

The woman identified as Calandra looks around the lobby, as if trying to make sure she was not being observed. She attempts to smile, though she appears distinctly nervous. "I guess so... I mean, it doesn't seem like anybody's here but us, so I might as well warm up..." Of course, Levin and Crix know that isn't true, but Calandra and her oddly transparent partner do not seem to be aware of their presence... at least, not yet.

How will Levin and Crix respond?

takkupanda- Mama Coffee is absolutely thrilled by Marcelo and Broly's enthusiasm, and bows slightly to Marcelo in thanks. "I knew I was right to summon you, Marcelo. You will be a great help to us; I'm sure of it." Mama Coffee chuckles a bit in response to Marcelo's confusion regarding how to leave a place entirely comprised of thick walls and boarded-up exits. "Oh, of course... Here, let me show you." Mama Coffee floats towards the emergency exit that Marcelo noticed earlier, and encourages him and Broly to follow her. As Marcelo and Broly approach the door, Mama Coffee instructs them to take a very close look at the wood. Noticing nothing in particular about the wood, Marcelo may begin to wonder what exactly he and Broly were looking for. Suddenly, the two are surprised by a quick shove from behind, as they find themselves hurtling through the closed door and collapsing outside of the building! Fortunately, though the pair is startled out of their wits, they are physically fine save for a few minor scrapes and scratches. When Marcelo touches the wood through which they previously plummeted like it was nothing but air, it seems to be completely solid and impenetrable again... Strange.

The Merry-Go-Round is not far from the Mantine Mania station; after all, both rides were considered favorites of the younger set (though they could be enjoyed by all ages), so it made sense for the original architects of the park to build the two rides close together, so that parents could take their children on both rides in quick succession. The quickest way to get to the Merry-Go-Round would be to go through the thick foliage that lines the railway, though the bushes may need to be cut down in order to prevent getting scratched and scraped up by the now-overgrown branches, and the potential dangers of such lovely plants as stinging nettle and poison ivy. There is also a chain-link fence nearby that could be climbed somehow, which either a Pokemon could do for Marcelo, or he could attempt the climb on his own (if he's dextrous/brave enough). Perhaps he might also be able to dig underneath it. Finally, Broly notices a human-sized clearing through the brush that the pair could climb through without much difficulty, though the path itself is thickly lined with rather large Pokemon tracks...

What will Broly and Marcelo do?

Balmund- William's face genuinely lights up as Balmund mentions Blackthorn city. "A trainer from Blackthorn, huh? I bet you would know a thing or two!" He chuckles a bit. "Not sure what she saw in me, but I hope you're right about me bein' the best thing for her... She seems pretty damn convinced a'that herself." He smiles gently. "I used to think she had Stockholm Syndrome or somethin', cause she took such a shine to me early on. Followed me around like a puppy, growling and biting anyone else who came near her. Don't know what her old trainer was like, really, but she never seemed to miss him all that much. Maybe it's like you said. She had a 'legal' trainer, but maybe she just never respected him or somethin'. Who knows... Anyway, Salamence is f**king cool. I'm sure Averil would love to test her strength against him." He gives Balmund a playful smirk. "Maybe we should set up some small-scale buildings and film their fight like a Godzilla movie, haha~! HAXZILLA VS. SALAMENCE!"

The two men sit down with trays full of meat-laden, cheesy goodness. As Balmund picks up a hot slice of pizza, the gooey mozzarella drips from the edges of the slice in large, succulent strings; he has to lift the slice carefully in order to ensure that the heavy dose of cheese and toppings does not slide right off the pizza. As he brings the slice to his lips, the aroma of meatballs, pepperoni, chorizo, linguica and ham tanatalizes his nostrils, the sheen of pizza-grease already staining Balmund's fingers before he even takes the first bite. It may not be gourmet, or even the best thing that Balmund's ever eaten, but the slice is full of flavor and the distinct sort of charm that comes from cheap, messy carnival-style food. William seems to be enjoying his pizza as well, and has already made a mess of a few napkins. As the two enjoy their meal, Balmund employs the same subtle tactics that William has been using all along, attempting to gather information through indirect questions and barely-traceable body language. He asks William about the last time he came to the park, hoping, perhaps, to get a better understanding of their surroundings, and why William has come to the park in the first place.

William thinks for a moment. "I visited a couple weeks before I met you, actually, but it wasn't much of a vacation. I kinda... y'know... snuck in." William's voice drops at the latter half of his statement, not looking exactly proud of himself. "Went to the Fortune Teller's tent to see if the rumors were true, y'know, about that lady bein' able to tap into the spirit world at night. Obviously a stupid, fake rumor started by some kids, but y'know, I haven't been right these past ten years. Things I used to brush off like nothin' get me wonderin'. So I decided to pay her a visit." He fingers the charm on the child-sized necklace around his neck gingerly. "Well, the pseudo-gypsy wasn't home, but her creepy little Natu was. Flew up to me with an envelope, and I took it. It was addressed specifically to me, weirdly enough. Like she knew I was comin'. I knew right then that whatever was in that letter was gonna be messed up, and man, it was." He grins a bit as he says this, and leans over his pizza towards Balmund, as if about to share a secret. "The stuff in that envelope could put this place outta business... permanently. Well, at least the Rollerquaza, anyhow. According to the letter, there have been at least ten deaths directly resulting from that ride. There's one for each different car. Phantom Isle has been paying families off to keep quiet for years, or so the letter goes." His grin widens. "I didn't wanna tell you while we were on the ride... you already looked like you were gonna piss yourself as it is, haha!"

William settles back into his chair, attempting to dramatically take a bite of his pizza as the information he just unloaded onto Balmund sinks in. With his mouth still full, he continues; "Yeah, mah- I thah it wash fake a firsht-" He continues after an accentuated swallow; "Y'know, but after doing a little bit a'research myself, seems like there are all kinds'a rumors about it. The weirdest one is the idea that after each death, a different Pokemon came to collect the soul of the dead rider. Number ten was the last of 'em; happened the same day as a certain tragic fi- *COUGH COUGH* man, I think some crust got lodged in my throat or somethin'. Anyway, it was a woman who straight died of a heart attack right at the peak. Guess the sight of the drop literally scared her to death. There's some eyewitness account or somethin' on the internet that said that while she was dyin', she saw lights- blue lights- and was wailin' that a certain legendary dragon was comin' for her. Lord n' Master of time itself; I'm sure a man from Blackthorn would know who I'm talkin' about." William looks at his watch and then looks back at Balmund, a strange smile on William's face. "In fact..."

"ATTENTION ALL PARKGOERS! ATTENTION ALL PARKGOERS! Due to unexpected maintenance, the Rollerquaza will be closed for the rest of today. I repeat, the Rollerquaza will be closed for unexpected maintenance for the remainder of the day. Thank you for your understanding, and have a pika-pika-positively magical day here at the Phantom Isle Theme Park!"

William feigns disappointment, though the ends of his mouth twitch with a mischievous grin. "Guess we were lucky to get on when we did, huh? By the timing, it sounds like whatever happened was on the rollercar we just left from..." At this point, William is failing to mask his dark enthusiasm. "A'course, if it's true that this particular Pokemon came to visit the ol' broad, it means the cart she died in is still blessed with the creature's power. Hah, who would be crazy enough to-" William pauses mid-sentence and suddenly looks around, as if startled by something. He takes a deep breath and tries to calm down, shoving pizza into his mouth like no tomorrow. "Berruh hurry-" he says between massive gulps. "We dun wanna run oudda time and mish out becush we spent too mussh time eadink-!" His eyes dart around nervously. "If you shee shomethin' weird... ret me know."

The unseen observers seem closer to you than they were before. Their gaze is becoming less like neutral observation, and more like a sinister glare burning a hole in the back of your head...

One hour and fifty minutes remain until the train leaves the Main Station.

Dark Searchman- Hyrem seems to be drowning in a sea of broken promises; the love and warmth of his Pokemon, the safety of his new Frillish friend and, indeed, his very life all seem to be floating away from him, and he is stuck, riveted to a fate he never would have chosen for himself, unable to chase after those hopes and dreams of the past. One of the zombie children breaks from the semicircle chain in order to retrieve something as Hyrem's mind swims with frantic thoughts. Though it all seems hopeless, Hyrem resolves not to give up; if not for his own life, then for the lives of his Pokemon. His decision, for now, is to play along with the zombie children's game, in hopes that he may persuade them to help him out of this dreadful situation. Hyrem decides to agree to telling a story, only if they will agree to help him with something. Tell your story first, Breather. It is an honor to have eyes so coveted by our Lady. We want to know why... What stories did your eyes tell her? What visions in this short life of yours have you seen? Realizing Hyrem's reluctance to share any information with her without the promise of help, the zombie child eventually sighs and remits. Tell us a story, and we will help you with whatever you may need... Though I must tell you, once you become one of us, you will need for nothing.

The zombie child who previously left the circle returns with a jar full of seawater, and stands to Hyrem's left, as if waiting for something to happen. Good, you are prepared, the female zombie hisses to the jar-holding child. Another child floats to Hyrem's right side quickly, as if also wanting to appear as prepared as the jar-holder, and cups her hands underneath Hyrem's eyes. The girl holding Hyrem down chuckles a bit, and urges Hyrem to go on with his story. As he relates the tale of a boy and his Ralts going on magnificant adventures, including the capture of a marvelous Chinchou, the children listen intently, mirroring the emotions of the story's protagonist in their faces as Hyrem relates the joys and sorrows of his journey. The story makes Hyrem long for old and new friends alike, as he thinks back to his beloved companions. Hyrem finds that as he speaks, it becomes easier and easier to talk in this underwater environment. It's almost as if his talking is encouraging the process to work faster. Hyrem's eyes begin to ache... He is beginning to feel diz-

AAAUGH! The zombie girl suddenly cries out in horrific pain as Hyrem feels himself being loosened from the girl's grip. The other zombies have returned to the state of rage that Hyrem witnessed them in previously, their attention completely fixed on their leader and whatever happened to cause her to cry out. They shout angry, incomprehensible blather at what Hyrem presumes to be the attacker; unable to resist his curiosity, Hyrem turns his head a bit to face the mysterious interference in the strange ceremony he seemed to be trapped in; who would have the bravery to go after a hoarde of eerie, rotted children?

As Hyrem turns, he comes face to face with a little blue jellyfish that appears to be trembling; it is hard to tell if the creature is trembling out of rage, fear or both. The Frillish's eyes are red with an ominous, ghostly power. Whatever he had done to make the little girl let go, it must have been quite the attack. When Frillish meets Hyrem's gaze, he makes a motion with one of his tentacles for Hyrem to run (or swim, as the case may be) away from here. Of course, Hyrem would never be the type to abandon his jelly friend, especially after the feelings of guilt he experienced after Frillish's first disappearance; however, it appears that Frillish is not alone. The dark, dank sea behind Frillish is alight with red eyes that match his own, which appear to be advancing quickly towards the group of zombies. Where on earth did these creatures come from? Why-

BROTHER, I WILL SILENCE YOU, the zombie leader screams as she pulls a Pokeball from her belt. The other zombies all seem similarly equipped. Including the leader, there are seven zombies in total, and there's no telling what might be in those Pokeballs... Frillish may seem to have a small army backing him, but Hyrem may have a difficult time leaving his companion to fend for himself given the circumstances. Then again, the zombification process seems to be advancing quickly as time progresses, and Hyrem will need every second in order to figure out how to reverse the curse that has befallen him.

What will Hyrem do?

Hyrem tried to play along with the children's wishes if only he could find an opening to escape or persuade them to help him. Tell your story first, Breather. It is an honor to have eyes so coveted by our Lady. We want to know why... What stories did your eyes tell her? What visions in this short life of yours have you seen? While he became seriously creeped out by the girl's words, questions started flowing through his mind. Who was this "Lady"? What could she have seen in him? Why did she want his eyes so much? Why did she want eyes in general? He refused to tell his story unless they agreed to help him, and he would be sure to ask those questions for starters. The girl eventually gives in, and says, Tell us a story, and we will help you with whatever you may need... Though I must tell you, once you become one of us, you will need for nothing.I'll bet, he thought with a shiver down his spine.

One of the undead kids had left the group and came back with a jar filled with seawater. Good, you are prepared, the girl holding Hyrem's legs says to the other. "Wha-? What's going on?" he asked, fear starting to fill him once again as another zombie cups her hands below his eyes. His "breathing" started to become faster as he understood the "process" would probably include his eyes falling out on their own. The girl chuckles in a childlike, yet sinister tone, and has Hyrem continue his story. As he tells it, the children were definitely enthralled by it, but they increased the creepy factor by expressing the exact same emotions he did. He could talk even easier now, but the process worked on him further as he felt pain in his eyes and became disoriented. He put his hand in front of his eyes to try to keep them from falling out. Suddenly-

AAAUGH! the girl screams, and Hyrem could feel his legs coming free from the zombie's grip. The other zombies resume their rage-filled rant and curse the force that attacked her so suddenly. "Who just-?" he asked as he looked behind him.

"Frillish?" he asked, turning around to meet his rescuer. Sure enough, there he was, trembling, his red eyes glowing with a dark, mysterious power. He had actually gathered the courage to stand up to the undead bullies, even use an attack that dealt quite a bit of damage to the girl. Frillish looked at his companion and pointed behind himself, wanting Hyrem to escape while he had the chance. "You want me to go?" he said. "No, I can't just leave you here to deal with them!" He swam up to meet Frillish, but then to his astonishment saw more of them, their red eyes glowing just like his. Where did they come from? Frillish must have somehow gathered them to launch this attack on the zombies.

BROTHER, I WILL SILENCE YOU, shrieked the undead girl as she and the other zombies took out Pokeballs. Great, these zombies are trainers too? Hyrem thought to himself. And they must have had all the time in the world to train up some extremely powerful Pokemon. Then he thought back to what that girl had just said. Brother... That meant something. What could have possibly happened? Is that an actual relationship between Frillish and the zombie? More questions rose up that Hyrem didn't have the answer to, and he needed answers to them FAST. In the meantime, even though Frillish may have rallied himself a resistance force, our hero had a nagging feeling it wouldn't be enough. "I'm staying here to help you fight them off! You helped me, now I need to make up for my mistake! Delilah, I need you!"

A blue and yellow anglerfish comes out of her Pokeball in a bright light and shines her glowing lures, raising Hyrem's morale if only a little just by her appearance. "Chinchou!" she says softly and happily.

"Delilah, get ready to synch up and battle because I see dead people, and they want to fight!" he said. "Whatever comes out, use Flash, Supersonic, then Thunder Wave against them! Hopefully the Frillish can capitalize on our tricks!"

"Chou!" said Delilah as she prepared to battle against the forces of the undead and their Pokemon.

Then a thought occurred to Hyrem. You see, he had met a scientist named Marion who had been studying Ghost Pokemon for years, and she told him about how some Ghost Pokemon are the spirits of humans that have passed on and are therefore able to speak human language. The Pokedex did say Frillish may have been the spirits of humans that fell victim to drowning, so maybe...

"Frillish, can you speak Human? Maybe you know how to stop whatever the 'process' is!" he asked. In their rage, the zombies definitely weren't in the mood to explain anything, but if the Frillish knew something, they might be able to help Hyrem undo the "process" and get out of these waters alive.

Okay first of all, yay I finally got these done! Secondly, Atari has been dropped due to inactivity, and Flame Mistress is under consideration of being dropped if she doesn't reply.

Trainer Andy: You cautiously step into the Strength opening, not sure what could possibly befall you. The light suddenly intensifies and as you raise your hands up to cover your eyes, the ground begins to shake. With a loud crack and deep rumbling the floor beneath you begins to open up. You watch with horror as the ground splits, watching the crevasse make its way towards you. Snapping out of your trance, you jump to the side, just avoiding plummeting down to your death. What on Earth caused that? you wonder as you peer down the crevice, trying to see if there was anything there that could have caused the earth to open up like that.

"Help," someone faintly utters, their voice echoing up. "Please someone help! There is something down here and I don't know how long I can keep myself safe!'

As if to validate the person's pleas, a loud roar echoes up as well, sounding like it comes from something large and potentially very dangerous.

What will you do?

Missingo. Master: Skuntank turns to Haunter before pouncing over, giving the ethereal pokemon a Sweet Kiss on its cheek. Haunter let out a little giggle and blushed as its eyes turned into spirals, the confusion setting in. Continuing to giggle, Haunter reached into itself and pulls out a large silver nail. Skuntank watches the nail warily, her eyes going wide once she realises what Haunter plans to do. The giggling ghost plunges the nail into itself, and Skuntank screams in pain as the Curse takes effect. Gritting her teeth, Skuntank raises her paw and and swipes at her opponent with a Shadow Claw. Haunter squeals in pain and, panting fairly heavily, raises its fist and Shadow Punches at Skuntank. Or at least it would have, had it not somehow managed to hit itself in confusion and managed to faint itself.

"Oh look, you beat Haunter," said the skeleton, fairly non-surplussed about losing. "Oh well, time for my next pokemon... you!"

Not sure what the skeleton meant you give him a look of confusion, before he suddenly stretches out his arm, and his hand shoots off and slams into your chest. A searing pain shoots through your body, as you watch with horror as an ethereal version of yourself is pulled out of your body. Or rather you watch your body as you are pulled out of it. The skeleton's hand retracts back to its body, and suddenly you both find yourself a lot smaller and and facing a very confused and horrified Skuntank.

"Come on out Rotom," says the skeleton, his voice dripping with amusement.

What will you do?

Son_of_Shadows: The children stare at you, their gaze completely unnerving you.

What is the meaning of this incense? asks one of the children, curiously circling the sticks.

Do not go near there! commands a child, floating to the forefront of the ghostly crowd, something about him seeming to exude leadership, you note that you should definitely keep your eye on him. This human wishes to trap up in them! And then he will force us to do his will!

I don't want to be trapped!

That's horrible!

What can we do?

Let's get him!

The panicking child ghosts stop, and all of them focus their attention towards you. They start to advance, their ghostly forms beginning to blur together. You take a couple of steps backwards as their new form begins to become clear. Now standing in front of you is a gigantic ghostly humanoid, completely devoid of any distinguishing features. Standing behind the humanoid is the leader ghost, a large smile on his.

Get them! he commands, pointing towards you.

What will you do?

myahoo: You step through the portal, not knowing what would happen to you. The moment you are completely through the portal, there is a strange sucking sound and you are sucked into it. You spin around and around and around, some sort of strange force completely taking over your body. Your vision starts to blur, as a figure of sorts comes into focus. As the rest of the world sort of disappears, the figure becomes clear. The figure walks up to you, and you see that it is... the fortune teller?

"My my," she says, a smirk on her face, "I wouldn't have thought that you would have been stupid enough to walk through the portal. Then again, I have thought that of everyone so far. I guess that the curiosity really does kill the cat."

She places her hands on your shoulders, and your entire body suddenly feels like cement. The fortune teller stares into your eyes and everything goes black.

You slowly open your eyes, and find yourself staring into the face of a giant doll! You shoot up and look around, horrified to find yourself in what appears to be a giant doll house, filled with many large dolls.

What will you do?

Ariden: As you make your way to the sign, the old man sighs and mutters about how no one listens to or respects their elders. With Whiscash intently watching both you and the old man, you grab onto the sign and pull it off. There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with it, so you have no idea what on earth the old man was going on about. The old man sighs again and covers his face, prompting you to question why he was doing that. You are about to ask him, when rather unfortunately, the sign in your hand explodes.

Somehow unharmed by the actual explosion, you are thrown back into the booth. Rushing after you, Whiscash follows, only just managing to get into the booth before somehow it completely closes off from the outside world. You spin around, trying to find a way out, but there doesn't seem to be anything that you can do.

"Hello there," whispers a voice, "If you wish to survive, I would recommend that you follow my voice."

What will you do?

CyberBlastoise: You head back to the sixth floor, determined to find out what is going on. Stepping onto the floor, you look around, trying to see if there maybe something that you haven't noticed that could give you any sort of hint as to what is going on.

"Sir may I please ask what you are doing in here?" someone asks.

You spin around and see a tall woman standing behind you, her skin incredibly pale and her eyes almost blood red. Naturally, you could tell that there was something off about this woman, so you start to back off.

"You are not meant to be here," she said, slowly walking towards you, "You are not from this time. Luckily for me, I am well equipped to deal with getting rid of people like you."

She smiles at you, revealing a pair of very big pointy fangs, still walking towards you.

What will you do?

Rotom310: The woman grabs your hand and pulls you behind her, Salazar slithering behind. An orange translucent orb forms around you and your pokemon and the woman slowly floats out of the hotel. You stare in bewilderment as you pretty much fly across the sky, before the woman sets you down outside of the theme park.

"Sorry about that," she says, dissipating the orb, "But I needed to get you away from there. And before you ask, and I know that you will, my name is Agni, and the giant you saw is Titan. The pair of us are superheroes who have been fighting against Ignacius for several years now."

She finishes speaking, assuming that to be an adequate explanation as to what is going on. Seeing that you are still standing there mystified, she realises that maybe it wasn't the best of explanations.

"Listen, there is something about you that Ignacius is interested in, and we don't know what it is at the moment," she says, "But he is going to come after you again, so Titan and I are willing to protect you until you are safe."

MarbleZone- With poor Min at wit's end, Levin decides to withdraw the frightened chinchilla in favor of a Pokemon with a bit more machismo; that manly essence comes in the form of a small Elekid, who is so unphased by his eerie environs that he seems to want to go off exploring himself! Reigning him in so that he can stay safe, Levin senses that Crix would be dissatisfied and may even disobey if asked to simply run away like a coward; however, Levin can't shake the feeling that the "guest" descending to the lobby may be more than the little Elekid can handle. Compromising between Crix's thirst for adventure and Levin's increasing desire for self-preservation, Levin physically guides Crix's head in to a ducking position as the two hide behind the counter, like two spies sneaking around enemy territory. Where's Otacon when you need him?

As the two assume sneaking position, the elevator arrives on the ground floor with a ding, which is soon followed by the double doors gradually opening to reveal their passanger. Levin is surprised (and likely relieved) that the young woman who gently strides out of the elevator indeed appears alive, though she is certainly a sight to behold; she is dressed in a gorgeous, floor-length black velvet gown with intricate embroidery in white and black thread lining the collar and sleeves; small, shimmering crystals accentuate the embroidery, and even seem to have been pinned carefully into her exquisitely-weaved updo of glistening, brunette locks that would likely extend past her waist without such intricate and extensive pinning. Her face is covered in what appears to be stage-makeup, and she is humming to herself as she enters the lobby. The hum is barely audible, yet it awakens something within Levin's heart that is difficult to describe... "An intense feeling of longing" does not begin to do it justice. Deep within the pit of his soul, something... aching stirs, as if some previously unacknowledged emptiness within himself was swelling with the melody and threatening to engulf the rest of his being... Heartbreak, sorrow, regret... What could possibly be happening to cause such a strange, melancholic feeling?

The young woman takes a short look around the lobby before turning to her right, standing like a statue, staring for awhile as if expecting something to appear. Perhaps she is simply caught in a deep reverie; however, after a few moments, something does seem to appear where her gaze has been transfixed... A man in fancy attire with long, messy black hair materializes out of thin air beside her, never fully reaching solid consistancy. "Oh, Calandra..." He mutters, a large grin on his face. "You look absolutely ravishing. The crowd is going to go completely wild before you even open your mouth, my dear!" The spectre places his ghostly hands on her shoulders, beaming with pride at his still-living companion.

"Thank you..." The woman blushes as she responds, her voice small and difficult to hear. "I don't know about that, but thank you. It's sweet of you to say."

"It's true, darling! I wouldn't say it if it wasn't true." He smiles. "Now, surely you want to warm up before your big performance, don't you?" The ghostly man gives her shoulders a light squeeze, nodding towards her as if trying to encourage her.

The woman identified as Calandra looks around the lobby, as if trying to make sure she was not being observed. She attempts to smile, though she appears distinctly nervous. "I guess so... I mean, it doesn't seem like anybody's here but us, so I might as well warm up..." Of course, Levin and Crix know that isn't true, but Calandra and her oddly transparent partner do not seem to be aware of their presence... at least, not yet.

How will Levin and Crix respond?

This... this feeling!...What is this?!

As the melody filled the hall, Levin felt an indescribable sensation, nothing short of heart-wrenching, painful even... As if all the losses, all the misfortunes in his life had just been experienced once more. His very soul was left shaken, disturbed, and an overwhelming feeling of sadness overtook him. Before he could drown deeper in his own sorrow and anguish, the song ceased.
What happened afterwards was something equally incomprehensible.

As a man's voice congratulated the dazzling young woman on her appearance, Levin forced himself to take a quick peak over the counter. In the middle of the hall stood the lady and a translucent figure of a man, thoroughly matching the classic description of ghosts from the folk tales. Ridiculous, a physical impossibility... but an undeniable fact all the same!

He took a while longer to gaze at the scene as long as he could go unnoticed.

The phantom took the appearance of a well-dressed man, with unruly black hair, whose hand rested on the woman's shoulder as he greeted her with a warm smile. Warm... yeah, sure.
But, for some weird reason, it wasn't the undead that caught his attention the longest. Soon, Levin's eyes had shifted to the beautiful young woman, with garments befitting a princess. Her features were pleasant, her own smile the prettiest he had ever seen, even if not genuine. She was clearly nervous about something, and wasn't doing a very good job at hiding it. And that singing...

"Now, surely you want to warm up before your big performance, don't you?"

Wait, what? Again?

The melody from before had been beautiful... but completely unnatural in the feelings it stirred inside him. Her voice had some paranormal effect on Levin, and he wasn't willing to experience any of it again so soon. Even if that meant exposing himself to the ghost and what other metaphysical wonders that came with it, he couldn't just stay in hiding and endure all of it again. He couldn't withstand an encore.

Grasping for courage he didn't even know was there, he forced himself to stand up and confront the couple.

- Hum, I... hum... Hi there! My-my name is... Levin! I got, hum... lost trying to find my room key, heh heh... But oh, look at that, I found it! Don't mind me, I-I... I was just about to leave! So sorry ab... CRIX?!

Amidst the fear that had taken over, Levin ngelcted to notice the spunky little Elekid that had made its way over to the poltergeist and now stood directly in front of him, looking him square in the eye with curiosity. Then, after what seemed like an eternity of silent gazing, it passed its hand clean across the man's leg, or where his leg had been once... Making no contact whatsoever, Crix tried again, amused. And again. And again.

Missingo. Master: Skuntank turns to Haunter before pouncing over, giving the ethereal pokemon a Sweet Kiss on its cheek. Haunter let out a little giggle and blushed as its eyes turned into spirals, the confusion setting in. Continuing to giggle, Haunter reached into itself and pulls out a large silver nail. Skuntank watches the nail warily, her eyes going wide once she realises what Haunter plans to do. The giggling ghost plunges the nail into itself, and Skuntank screams in pain as the Curse takes effect. Gritting her teeth, Skuntank raises her paw and and swipes at her opponent with a Shadow Claw. Haunter squeals in pain and, panting fairly heavily, raises its fist and Shadow Punches at Skuntank. Or at least it would have, had it not somehow managed to hit itself in confusion and managed to faint itself.

"Oh look, you beat Haunter," said the skeleton, fairly non-surplussed about losing. "Oh well, time for my next pokemon... you!"

Not sure what the skeleton meant you give him a look of confusion, before he suddenly stretches out his arm, and his hand shoots off and slams into your chest. A searing pain shoots through your body, as you watch with horror as an ethereal version of yourself is pulled out of your body. Or rather you watch your body as you are pulled out of it. The skeleton's hand retracts back to its body, and suddenly you both find yourself a lot smaller and and facing a very confused and horrified Skuntank.

"Come on out Rotom," says the skeleton, his voice dripping with amusement.

What will you do?

Things have definitely taken a turn for the worse and/or bizarre as Keith finds himself transformed by the skeleton into a Rotom. Once the initial shock (pun intended) of being turned into the Ghost/Electric-type blows over, Keith tries to assess the situation. He was a Rotom. A ****ing Rotom! OK, OK, no time to panic. He thinks some more. The skeleton was commanding him as if he were his Pokémon- which, he now thought in a sudden panic, he probably did count as such, now. The skeleton obviously expected obedience out of him. On the other hand, Keith had no inclination whatsoever to bring any semblance of harm to his own Pokémon. He glanced at Bellatrix, who was obviously very much distressed by this turn of events. Like he could blame her? Keith reviewed his options. He could comply with the skeleton's orders and battle. Perhaps if he was cooperative, the skeleton would be more willing to turn him back into a human. On the other hand, this would mean having to attack his own Pokémon. Besides which, Keith knew neither what attacks he could use, nor what level he was supposed to be. Another option would be trying to command Bellatrix to attack the skeleton directly, but given this unexpected twist, would she recognize the orders as coming from her trainer? He could try attacking the skeleton himself- but again, he knew not what moves he knew, or even if they would do anything to the skeleton. Going over all these options in his head, Keith decides on the first option, albeit with something added on; to try and talk to the skeleton, possibly talk him out of having to attack his own Pokémon, or at the very least, garner some information about his new form- what level he was at, the moves he could use, that sort of thing. Perhaps if he was compliant, things might go smoothly. A small part of his brain took that moment to acknowledge the fact that it might even be fun to be a Pokémon, especially one capable of possessing machinery. He therefore turned to the skeleton and addressed him.

"Excuse me," Keith said as respectfully as he could, "But might I possibly ask why you saw fit to turn me into a Rotom and pit me against my own Pokémon? If you wish me to battle, I certainly will, but if possible, could I possibly... not? I really don't want to have to fight my own Pokémon. That said, if I have to, I would be most interested to know what level I am, and what moves I know, as such information will allow me to get a better idea as to how I should conduct myself in the battle. If I outlevel my own Skuntank sufficiently enough, for instance, I would know that I could afford to be more reckless, whereas if it turns out I'm at a lower level, I would know to exercise more caution." He then turned to face Bellatrix, and gave a small wink, with the intention to convey that he didn't really intend to hurt her. Indeed, he fully intended to deliberately misfire as many attacks as possible, so as to not harm Bellatrix.

OOC: My Pokémon have been nicknamed since my last reply. Skuntank is now Bellatrix.

Ariden: As you make your way to the sign, the old man sighs and mutters about how no one listens to or respects their elders. With Whiscash intently watching both you and the old man, you grab onto the sign and pull it off. There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with it, so you have no idea what on earth the old man was going on about. The old man sighs again and covers his face, prompting you to question why he was doing that. You are about to ask him, when rather unfortunately, the sign in your hand explodes.

Somehow unharmed by the actual explosion, you are thrown back into the booth. Rushing after you, Whiscash follows, only just managing to get into the booth before somehow it completely closes off from the outside world. You spin around, trying to find a way out, but there doesn't seem to be anything that you can do.

"Hello there," whispers a voice, "If you wish to survive, I would recommend that you follow my voice."

What will you do?

The trainer coughed upon the explosion, after which he then was knocked down into the booth, slightly hurting his back. His whiscash followed him but for fear of its tail, it retreated its tail inwards and was unable to stop the door from closing. Ariden tried to get up, but felt that he needed to sit down a little more, just in case he gets more dizzy after spinning too much. While that happened, his whiscash also flopped around trying to find a crack within the floor in hopes of finding a new way out.

"What the eff? You can't do this to me," Ariden stood up and shouted at the air, but realized that shouting was not going to get him anywhere. Upon hearing the voice, he thought that this was pretty much the work of the old man, but he didn't want to accuse anybody just yet. "Alright, fine. I'll follow," suggested Ariden, but he knowingly did not trust anymore than that. His whiscash followed behind, but began smacking its trainer with a Zen Headbutt.

"Yeah, I know. If I start acting weird, like running madly towards the voice, laughing like a clown or having zombie eyes, you can always muddle the voice using Water pulse, or hit me with Mud slap to stop me from doing something crazy," he whispered to his whiscash, soothing it somewhat.

Meetan- With the thieving Purrloin distracted by Swinub, Alice takes the opportunity to dismount the mechanical Rapidash and grab her berry bag. Fortunately, the Purrloin remains distracted by the battle, leaving Alice free and clear to reclaim her berry collection and return it to its rightful place. As she does this, she orders her Swinub to perform an Odor Sleuth so that Swinub will be able to more easily identify the Purrloin's scent, and be able to follow the creature not only using sight, but smell as well. The piglike Pokemon takes in the air around him with a long, hard sniff from his adorable piggy nose, and the confident look in his eyes seems to indicate that he's locked on to Purrloin's unique olfactory signature. Purrloin notices immediately that her opponent does not seem to be attacking at the moment, though he seems to be preparing for something; unsure of the pig's intentions, she once again Growls at Swinub, as if to warn him against trying anything funny; unfortunately for Purrloin, her attempt at a wicked snarl is foiled as she ends up coughing up a hairball! Groooss. Swinub uses this opportunity to scurry off of the Rapidash to get at some ground in order to perform a Mud Slap, though the fall from the Rapidash is not executed perfectly, and Swinub seems to have taken a bit of damage from landing awkwardly. The Rapidash winces at the fall, asking, "Are you okay, pardner?" Swinub responds with a strong, determined "Swin" and gets right back up, and uses his snout to push up dirt and mud from the ground and fling it towards his attacker. Though the dirt and mud misses Purrloin's eyes, it hits her square in the chest, doing a bit of damage and knocking her off the Rapidash, as well. The Purrloin chooses to respond with an attack that matches her mood, as she attempts to furiously rip the Swinub apart with Fury Swipes; however, Swinub is particularly quick on his feet now that he's back on the ground, and he is fortunately able to dodge out of the way! As Swinub prepares to hit Purrloin with a chilly blast of Icy Wind, Purrloin runs at top speed towards her oppoent, as if she was going to ram herself directly into him... Swinub immediately stops his attack and braces for impact, only to find himself completely fooled by a Fake Out. As he flinches from the attack that never comes, he leaves himself wide open to Purrloin's Scratch, which Purrloin manages to pull off right across Swinub's super-sensitive nose! The poor creature howls in pain, having taken a hard hit.

Purrloin and Swinub now seem to be equally damaged, at roughly three-fifths of their original health. Swinub no longer seems to be effected by Purrloin's previous Tormenting. The mechanical Rapidash urges Swinub on, saying things like, "I know y'can do it, kiddo! Show that varmint who's the real sheriff 'round these parts!"

How will Meetan respond?

"Rapidash is right! You know for a fact that we won't take that, Swinub!" Alice shouted, determined as ever. The battle was close now, and she knew it. "Show off your Charm, Swinub! Then Bite that tail and use Powder Snow right up close!" The girl continued, tense as she leaned forward, observing the scene with a keen eye. Hell, the trainer looked ready to jump into the fray herself. Battles were thrilling, and it was clear what her hope for a result was: the teenager had one hand hovering over an empty Poke Ball. Once the Purrloin was down - or close enough - she'd go in for a capture. She had a friend who liked feline Pokemon, and even the thing was a little bugger, she had a good feeling that Noriko would appreciate the gift. If it all turned out well, of course.

Trainer Andy: You cautiously step into the Strength opening, not sure what could possibly befall you. The light suddenly intensifies and as you raise your hands up to cover your eyes, the ground begins to shake. With a loud crack and deep rumbling the floor beneath you begins to open up. You watch with horror as the ground splits, watching the crevasse make its way towards you. Snapping out of your trance, you jump to the side, just avoiding plummeting down to your death. What on Earth caused that? you wonder as you peer down the crevice, trying to see if there was anything there that could have caused the earth to open up like that.

"Help," someone faintly utters, their voice echoing up. "Please someone help! There is something down here and I don't know how long I can keep myself safe!'

As if to validate the person's pleas, a loud roar echoes up as well, sounding like it comes from something large and potentially very dangerous.

What will you do?

"That... was a close one"

Andy found himself hugging the wall, waiting for the shaking in the ground, and his legs, to pass. He'd barely had time to let his vision settle from the blinding light before the floor had parted, sending him hurtling sideways for his life.

What on earth caused that? He pondered to himself as the tremors subsided. Cautiously Andy peered into the crevice that was left behind, one hand still firmly on the wall in case he needed to pull himself back at any second. The crevasse was dark, and who knew how deep, but Andy could have sworn that he could hear something coming from it. Slowly he leaned in closer.

"Help," he finally hears, a voice echoing up from the darkness. It was faint though, Andy was unable to tell if it was male or female. Either it sounded desperate and scared.

"Please someone help!" The voice came again, a little clearer this time. "There is something down here and I don't know how long I can keep myself safe!'

Now Andy was by no mean a hero, but even he couldn't ignore the cries of somebody in trouble. Although he the sound that came next did make him think twice, a deep, loud roar, filling the air with it's echo. A roar that gave untold size and menace to the unseen creature that had bellowed it. Andy found himself back against the wall, heart hammering.

"What the hell is that?" He asked himself, although his brain failed to provide him with an answer. He tried to clear his head, stick to the things he did know.

1) There was somebody down that crevice somebody that needed help
2) There was something else down there that sounded very big and dangerous

"I don't even know how far down that thing goes, it's too dark." He stopped, lost in thought again. "If only I had some sort of light, like a torch or flame... Of course!"
Hurriedly Andy plucked off one of the Pokeballs that was attached to his belt. Pressing the release button, the ball popped open with a small flash of light that formed into the shape of a Slugma.

"Listen carefully, Iggy," Said Andy, kneeling down in front of the newest member of his team, "There's somebody down this hole, and we need to help them. But first I need to be able to see whats what, so I need you to fire a Flamethrower down there and hopefully that should give us a little light."

The Slugma looked slowly down the hole next to it, then back up at it's Trainer. It seemed to be thinking about something, but then it gave a slow yawn and seemed to start taking a nap.

"Iggy, for crying out loud!" Exclaimed the Trainer, "This is not the time for sleeping. I promise if you do this for me, i'll give you a nice Rare Candy to eat."

Iggy half-opened one eye, as if his Trainer's words were tempting, but he was going to need a little more incentive.

"Fine," Andy said with a resigned sigh. He rummaged through his backpack, pulling out an addition to his bribe, "One Rare Candy now, and another when you've done the job. Deal?"

This seemed to work for the Slugma, as he suddenly seemed to spring to life. He sat, mouth open, waiting for the treat. With a sigh, Andy fed the Rare Candy to his Pokemon, who seemed to swallow it whole the second it was in his mouth. Without a word it turned to the crevice and, with a deep breath, let out a stream of red hot flames.

Andy moved in closer, peering into the darkness, attempting to see what would await him.

Last edited by Trainer Andy; 6th July 2012 at 1:47 AM.
Reason: Added a link to the Rare Candy

I'll only be taking these three for now, sorry. I might change my cap sometime this summer though. Hope you enjoy your time here, XatuGamer, King Ghidorah, and Emp! EDIT: Including kaisap for the last spot. I'm now capped!

XatuGamer- After sneaking past the Park's entrance, you pick up a map flying in the air. Although you wanted a specific place to investigate, you decide to walk around first. You notice the bulletin boards of news and new attractions, waiting lines, and old lampposts that flicker on and off. You and Necro started to become interested in the area, so you decide to begin your investigation.

You reach for your backpack, and pulled out the map you collected earlier. The paper was crumpled and blurry, probably because it must have dried out after becoming soggy in a rainy day. You make out a part in the map listed as "Theme Park Train" and another that said "Circus Tent". Decisions, decisions. You thought deeply on where to go, but after a while you question your 2nd brain for help. "Necro, which looks interesting?" The crow swooped down skillfully and tapped the area where the Train was. You nod in agreement, and rolled up the paper. "Ghost Train it is. We'll see some clowns later, eh?" You begin to pace towards the Train, keeping the rolled up paper in your fist. As you walk, you begin to hear whispers, screams, and begs for help. You and Necro keep to your route though, unflinching at all the sounds and paranormal activity going on around you.

After a few minutes, you reach the spot on the map you were aiming for. You look up from the map, and back down, making sure you're at the right spot. The train was out of the rails, slumped on the bricked ground of the park, revealing raised bricks from its sides. Realizing that it was a train wreck, you remember hearing from somewhere that a famous Park was closed due to a major train wreck.

Suddenly, fog surrounds you, and distorts everything around you. You couldn't see anyone, but Necro's shadow up above. "Where'd the train go?" You ask, squinting and looking around in the fog. Then, as if on cue, you hear a Hooottt.....Hoootttttt as you see a light approaching towards you. You notice that the ground your standing on shifted. The dirty old bricks were now bright gray tiles, and soon the area around you was flooded with thousands of conversations. The fog that engulfed you soon rolled away, revealing a bright sunlight that hurt your vision. Around you, hundreds of people were waiting for the train, which was slowly halting. You run towards a ledge, which revealed the park in a wonderful point of view. The Ferris Wheel stood tall above tents, kids running around while their parents talk and try and catch up. Vendors selling all types of refreshments. And above all, the Rollerquaza towered majestically as its tip reaches the white fluffy clouds. You were awestruck at the view, but you were interrupted by a passenger in the train. "Hey kid, door's about to close, you coming?" You nod awkwardly, and called Necro down. He perched in your shoulder, grooming himself with his beaks. "All aboard, eh?"

You hurry towards the door, which almost shut before you managed to slip inside. Where are you really? You know this wasn't real, or if it was, it must have happened in the past. You look at a man, who was reading a newspaper. The date on the paper was familiar, and then it came to you. As you were walking towards the train, you saw a newspaper cover on the ground, which featured a story about the tragic train wreck. It supposedly happened....it happened today! You realized that you are now aboard the train during the day of its crash.

How will Reiji and Necro respond?

"Well Necro, looks like we're in a bit of a rut no, eh?"

Reiji glances at the time on his watch. Necro caws, and Reiji murmurs "Right time and everything. Looks like we have a bit of a problem, eh Necro?"

Reiji begins to think of what the best solution would be. Stopping the train would change the future, and that may not be for the best. Let's just try to find a way out.

He glances out the window, and realizes it's too dark to see how far away the wall is.

Well, now would be a good time to have a flashlight, Reiji thinks with grim humor.

He then slowly makes his way to the back of the train, bumping into others the whole time and quietly saying " 'Scuse me, sorry about that." Finally reaching the back, he walks out onto the little platform and looks down.

Balmund- William's face genuinely lights up as Balmund mentions Blackthorn city. "A trainer from Blackthorn, huh? I bet you would know a thing or two!" He chuckles a bit. "Not sure what she saw in me, but I hope you're right about me bein' the best thing for her... She seems pretty damn convinced a'that herself." He smiles gently. "I used to think she had Stockholm Syndrome or somethin', cause she took such a shine to me early on. Followed me around like a puppy, growling and biting anyone else who came near her. Don't know what her old trainer was like, really, but she never seemed to miss him all that much. Maybe it's like you said. She had a 'legal' trainer, but maybe she just never respected him or somethin'. Who knows... Anyway, Salamence is f**king cool. I'm sure Averil would love to test her strength against him." He gives Balmund a playful smirk. "Maybe we should set up some small-scale buildings and film their fight like a Godzilla movie, haha~! HAXZILLA VS. SALAMENCE!"

The two men sit down with trays full of meat-laden, cheesy goodness. As Balmund picks up a hot slice of pizza, the gooey mozzarella drips from the edges of the slice in large, succulent strings; he has to lift the slice carefully in order to ensure that the heavy dose of cheese and toppings does not slide right off the pizza. As he brings the slice to his lips, the aroma of meatballs, pepperoni, chorizo, linguica and ham tanatalizes his nostrils, the sheen of pizza-grease already staining Balmund's fingers before he even takes the first bite. It may not be gourmet, or even the best thing that Balmund's ever eaten, but the slice is full of flavor and the distinct sort of charm that comes from cheap, messy carnival-style food. William seems to be enjoying his pizza as well, and has already made a mess of a few napkins. As the two enjoy their meal, Balmund employs the same subtle tactics that William has been using all along, attempting to gather information through indirect questions and barely-traceable body language. He asks William about the last time he came to the park, hoping, perhaps, to get a better understanding of their surroundings, and why William has come to the park in the first place.

William thinks for a moment. "I visited a couple weeks before I met you, actually, but it wasn't much of a vacation. I kinda... y'know... snuck in." William's voice drops at the latter half of his statement, not looking exactly proud of himself. "Went to the Fortune Teller's tent to see if the rumors were true, y'know, about that lady bein' able to tap into the spirit world at night. Obviously a stupid, fake rumor started by some kids, but y'know, I haven't been right these past ten years. Things I used to brush off like nothin' get me wonderin'. So I decided to pay her a visit." He fingers the charm on the child-sized necklace around his neck gingerly. "Well, the pseudo-gypsy wasn't home, but her creepy little Natu was. Flew up to me with an envelope, and I took it. It was addressed specifically to me, weirdly enough. Like she knew I was comin'. I knew right then that whatever was in that letter was gonna be messed up, and man, it was." He grins a bit as he says this, and leans over his pizza towards Balmund, as if about to share a secret. "The stuff in that envelope could put this place outta business... permanently. Well, at least the Rollerquaza, anyhow. According to the letter, there have been at least ten deaths directly resulting from that ride. There's one for each different car. Phantom Isle has been paying families off to keep quiet for years, or so the letter goes." His grin widens. "I didn't wanna tell you while we were on the ride... you already looked like you were gonna piss yourself as it is, haha!"

William settles back into his chair, attempting to dramatically take a bite of his pizza as the information he just unloaded onto Balmund sinks in. With his mouth still full, he continues; "Yeah, mah- I thah it wash fake a firsht-" He continues after an accentuated swallow; "Y'know, but after doing a little bit a'research myself, seems like there are all kinds'a rumors about it. The weirdest one is the idea that after each death, a different Pokemon came to collect the soul of the dead rider. Number ten was the last of 'em; happened the same day as a certain tragic fi- *COUGH COUGH* man, I think some crust got lodged in my throat or somethin'. Anyway, it was a woman who straight died of a heart attack right at the peak. Guess the sight of the drop literally scared her to death. There's some eyewitness account or somethin' on the internet that said that while she was dyin', she saw lights- blue lights- and was wailin' that a certain legendary dragon was comin' for her. Lord n' Master of time itself; I'm sure a man from Blackthorn would know who I'm talkin' about." William looks at his watch and then looks back at Balmund, a strange smile on William's face. "In fact..."

"ATTENTION ALL PARKGOERS! ATTENTION ALL PARKGOERS! Due to unexpected maintenance, the Rollerquaza will be closed for the rest of today. I repeat, the Rollerquaza will be closed for unexpected maintenance for the remainder of the day. Thank you for your understanding, and have a pika-pika-positively magical day here at the Phantom Isle Theme Park!"

William feigns disappointment, though the ends of his mouth twitch with a mischievous grin. "Guess we were lucky to get on when we did, huh? By the timing, it sounds like whatever happened was on the rollercar we just left from..." At this point, William is failing to mask his dark enthusiasm. "A'course, if it's true that this particular Pokemon came to visit the ol' broad, it means the cart she died in is still blessed with the creature's power. Hah, who would be crazy enough to-" William pauses mid-sentence and suddenly looks around, as if startled by something. He takes a deep breath and tries to calm down, shoving pizza into his mouth like no tomorrow. "Berruh hurry-" he says between massive gulps. "We dun wanna run oudda time and mish out becush we spent too mussh time eadink-!" His eyes dart around nervously. "If you shee shomethin' weird... ret me know."

The unseen observers seem closer to you than they were before. Their gaze is becoming less like neutral observation, and more like a sinister glare burning a hole in the back of your head...

One hour and fifty minutes remain until the train leaves the Main Station.

How does Balmund respond?

Balmund certainly gathered a lot more than he had hoped for as William goes over the events on his previous visit. Balmund listened attentively throughout, mechanically gulping down his meaty carnival of a pizza. Though he never admitted it, he was constantly reminded by his friends of how much he looked like a vacuum cleaner when eating, and molten hot cheese did little to slow him down right now. He had never imagined how full of intrigue this park was even before the great accident. The deaths resulted from the Rollerquaza would indeed have caused quite an outrage had they not taken measures to prevent the media from getting their hands on them. And the mention of that one dragon, lord of time... of course it rang a bell to Balmund, but it didn't made it any easier to believe the god-like creature had come after that woman. And yet, there they were, talking about past events that were yet to repeat themselves while eating a bit of that famed pizza that no one should be able to taste anymore. What other possible explanation there was? The car carried the power of the great Dialga, and as they heard the announcement regarding the Rollerquaza suddenly being closed down, he knew he was lucky to not have given it another go back there. Will, of course, was already expecting this, and he kept on talking he seemed to get a bit careless with the way he frased his words. He stops mid sentence, perhaps suddenly aware of his mistake, and makes haste to move on, looking around nervously for any sign of danger.

It would seem things were definitely not going to go so smooth from now on, and though Balmund still had questions that needed an answer, they couldn't afford to talk about it over a meal and a drink. Feeling the intensity of a malicious gaze staring at him, Balmund quickly glances at William before getting ahold of one of his Pokéballs, that of his Salamence. "I think you can tell already Will, but I feel we messed up. I say we make a run for it and Fly straight to the train. You?"

uhhhhh- Connor is beginning to realize the truth behind the horrifying vision in the mirror. The cruel, inhuman murderer depicted as choking the life out of Connor was not the little 'floon at all. It is plain to see by its newly demonic aspects that the true culprit is actually the eerie little gift he received from the Balloon Man, which now glares with vicious eyes towards the man, monkey and 'floon. In fact, it seems as if the short-tempered Drifloon, despite its insults and impatience, was actually trying to help Connor and Gaspard avoid a gristly fate... One the little balloon Pokemon likely knew all too well. Gaspard is particularly pumped-up for this battle, and seems to be in absolute top fighting form; Connor is surprised by the fervor and viciousness with which his companion jumps into battle. For Gaspard, this is the ultimate test of loyalty: protecting one's trainer from certain death. Gaspard is not about to let his trainer down. Not by a long shot.

Before the evil balloon can attempt to attack the interfering Drifloon, Gaspard closes the gap between him and the demonic creature with a well-timed Pursuit, which knocks a decent-sized hole in the balloon's rubber. Drifloon, hoping to take advantage of the opening, dives at the creature with his giant scissors; before it is able to Cut the hole wider; however, the balloon unleashes a monstrous Whirlwind, which knocks Drifloon straight down the corridor and into the mirror on the other side. The Drifloon bounces back fairly unscathed, but has been knocked a considerable distance away from the battle. Meanwhile, Gaspard tries his luck at another Pursuit. This time, the hole it produces in the rubber is considerably smaller than his previous attack. Turning its attentions toward Gaspard, the demon cackles maniacally before the tiny hole Gaspard made bursts open, turning into a wide gash. From the gash, a dark substance leaks out, seeping into Gaspard before he can even defend himself. It seems as if the demon was successful laying a vicious Curse on the monkey. As Drifloon floats as fast as it can back to the battle, it calls out to Connor and Gaspard in its airy voice; We have to break apart the rubber, it shouts, as Gaspard unleashes a Fire Punch directly into the rubber. The smell of burned rubber fills the air as the area around the hole created by the punch slowly burns. Unfortunately, it seems as if the demon can use this fire to his advantage, and responds by blasting back an Ember towards Gaspard. The monkey howls out in pain as he is his square in the chest by the flames, but recovers quickly from the burning attack. Suddenly, Gaspard appears to be sick, as the dark substance that previously emanated from the demon balloon now seeps out of his mouth, draining his health. Connor senses that if the balloon is not taken out quickly, Gaspard will succumb to the Curse, whatever it may be...

As Drifloon attempts to re-enter the fray, he is stopped by Connor's question. What do you think is the Drifloon's irritated response, before once again diving at the balloon with his scissors. This time, his attack is effective in snipping the rubber between two holes apart, creating a single, larger one.

The structure of the demon is still in-tact, though there are some rather large holes on the balloon's left side.

What will Connor and Gaspard do?

The early parts may be a bit confusing to you but it's related to stuff that I have yet to reveal about my character yet. :)

Connor never felt so frightened in his life before. His and Gaspard's life was on the line here and if they don't do something about this, then it's most likely that Connor will be doomed to live as a Drifloon forever, aimlessly wandering around the House of Mirrors (and ironically, he already fits the "aimlessly wandering" part quite well... almost too well.) Strangely enough, Connor felt that the feeling of having your own life on the line was quite... familiar. It was as if he was totally used to it by now, but he couldn’t quite remember when, where and how he felt it before. He thought back to the second image, the one he saw after he saw the image of him being transformed to a Drifloon. It was too blurry for him to make anything out of it... but was it possible that it could that be related to this strange feeling of familiarity?

His thought process was interrupted as the Drifloon approached the battlefield once more after being blown away by the Whirlwind, he answered Connor’s question, “What do you think?” the balloon irritatedly replied. Connor just stared at the balloon, who confirmed his theory, “So, it’s true huh...” the photographer simply said. He didn’t know what to say to the Drifloon after that, well actually he did but he felt that the question he would ask him would take a while to finish- and they didn’t have the time right now to chit-chat, what with the demonic balloon still after Connor and all. Plus the balloon was likely to get mad at him again for asking such a question in the middle of battle.

As Connor saw that Gaspard had been cursed, he winced. He knew that Gaspard was willing to risk his life to save him, and was quite surprised earlier at his fighting spirit to destroy the balloon at all costs, but at the same time, he didn’t want him to end up hurt too badly. ” We have to end this quickly Gaspard, for both our sakes..." Connor muttered to his partner. Gaspard weakly nodded at what he he said. "Ai...Aipom!" the monkey said to him. "There's already quite a big hole on the left side... strike where it hurts the most right? Gaspard, use Softboiled to heal yourself first and then use Fury Cutter right on the hole! Make the hole bigger and spread it to its right side! If that still doesn’t work, then throw a Seed Bomb in the hole! We’ll try bursting it from the inside!" Connor commanded his partner.

Mon1010- Scott's response to the frightened girl is to politely inform her that there is, indeed, nothing behind her. "Okay, good...Safe for now." She responds. However, she seems to completely ignore Scott when he asks her why she would ask such a question in the first place; instead, Scott finds a trembling Gulpin being shoved into his arms. "Hold him for me, will you," though clearly not waiting to give Scott a choice in the matter. As if wanting to explain herself, she adds, "I lost his former owner's Pokeball, so I can't recall him. We can fix that though..." Now that her hands are free, the girl removes her backpack from her shoulders, and starts rummaging through it. "Dammit, I knew I should've picked up some Great Balls back at headquarters..." She mutters to herself as she digs through the Pokeballs pocket of her backpack, which looks completely empty. Gulpin's trembling seems to subside somewhat in Scott's arms; perhaps the Gulpin senses something in the trainer's nature that calms him. Either way, the girl zips up her backpack and sighs, addressing the Gulpin directly. "There's not much I can do for you if you won't let yourself get caught kiddo. I can't carry you forev-"

The sound of inhuman laughter interrupts the girl's chiding. Scott can physically feel the Gulpin shudder, as he immediately buries his face into Scott's shirt. The girl tries to gently take the Gulpin away from Scott, but Gulpin refuses to budge, clinging to Scott for dear life, perhaps hoping the scary laughter will go away if he buries his face deeper into Scott's chest. The poor creature appears to be shaking and crying, as evidenced by the tears that are now smearing themselves across Scott's shirt. The girl decides not to press the issue, and instead says to Scott, please protect that Gulpin!" She then turns to face the noise; though visibly afraid, she takes out one of six Pokeballs off her belt, and calls out a Houndour, which she refers to as "Melanie." Melanie growls in the direction of the noise, clearly sensing something sinister about the laughter that seems to be steadily getting louder. The girl pets the Houndour lightly on the head, a concerned look on her face. She seems hesitant to let the Houndour fight, but it seems as if her options are running out at this point.

Scott see's the girl's pursers in the mirrors before they actually appear. at first, the floating creatures appear to be Pokemon, but as they came closer, it becomes clear that the tattered, burned, charred, and mangled objects are actually giant stuffed animals, just like the ones that used to be given out at the park as prizes to exceptionally lucky children. In fact, the tag that hangs from the flopped, torn ear of one of the plushies has the logo of the Theme Park emblazoned on it. The stuffed animals are drenched in blood, which mats their fur, and their button eyes appear to be glowing with some kind of unnatural force. The smaller of the two stuffed animals, which looks like a plush version of Eevee, appears to be the source of the insane laughter that alerted the trainers to the presence of these evil entities. The larger stuffed animal, made to look like a plushie version of Arcanine, keeps repeating the word "ABANDONED...ABANDONED..." over and over again in an eerie high pitched voice; its nearly decapitated head lobs to the side, stuffing seeping from the "wound," as the creepy voice eminates from within its body. Melanie and her trainer stand their ground, ready to attack the creepy ghost plushies once they get in range.

How do you react?

The girl just dumped the Gulpin onto him, ignoring his question about what it was she was running from. Apparently, she lost the Gulpin's former trainer Pokeball. She dug through her bag, trying find an empty Pokeball, but did not succeed. This begged the question what happened to the trainer to make them former? She then told him to protect the Gulpin. Ok, but protect him from what?

Soon, Scott would get his answer. Suddenly, a creepy laugh was heard. The Gulpin in Scott arms was scared to tears. He buried his head into the boys chest, and staining the boy's shirt with tears. He tried patting him on the back, but wasn't really sure what to say to it, since he didn't know what was going on himself. Shaana was also spooked by the noise, as she hid behind her trainer's shoulder and started shivering.

Soon, the source of the laugh, and what this girl was likely running from, soon appeared. A pair of bloody Ghost plushies. An Arcanine plushie was saying "ABANDONED..." over and over again in a creepy high pitched voice, while the Eevee plushie laughed. "Ew..." Scott said, disgusted by the sight of the bloodied plushies. The girl had sent out her Houndour, and looked like she was ready to attack those plushies. Scott was ready to the same.

"Ok Shaana. Use 3 Psybeams on those things. Make them go away please." Scott shuddered. Those creepy dolls only seemed to get creepier the longer Scott looked at them. He also softly rocked the Gulpin in his arms back and forth, hoping to calm him down.

Son_of_Shadows: The children stare at you, their gaze completely unnerving you.

What is the meaning of this incense? asks one of the children, curiously circling the sticks.

Do not go near there! commands a child, floating to the forefront of the ghostly crowd, something about him seeming to exude leadership, you note that you should definitely keep your eye on him. This human wishes to trap up in them! And then he will force us to do his will!

I don't want to be trapped!

That's horrible!

What can we do?

Let's get him!

The panicking child ghosts stop, and all of them focus their attention towards you. They start to advance, their ghostly forms beginning to blur together. You take a couple of steps backwards as their new form begins to become clear. Now standing in front of you is a gigantic ghostly humanoid, completely devoid of any distinguishing features. Standing behind the humanoid is the leader ghost, a large smile on his.

Get them! he commands, pointing towards you.

What will you do?

The situation went from bad to worse. One ghost asked the meaning of the incense, and Joshua was about to reply that it was simply a show of respect, but he was quickly interrupted by one child, who seemed to be leading them. He could practically smell the authority the kid had.

Somehow. He decided not to question that.

In any case, the leader child quickly turned the others against him, accusing him of being there to capture and enslave the ghost children. As fun as that sounded, and as much as Joshua loved the Ghostbusters (he had a private dream that one day someone would ask him if he was a god, and he would say yes), he had no intention of doing so. Again, he had no chance to explain, as the ghosts melded together like the Atomic Boo in Paper Mario, creating a giant, ghostly humanoid abomination... And the leader child smiling behind it, commanding the creature. Well, this looked bad. Very bad.

"As I've said before, I mean no harm... But we will defend ourselves if we must! Bishop, to action!" Joshua had a plan - if he could take out that leader ghost, perhaps he could convince the others to listen to him. Maybe asskicking equalled authority in their society? Worth a shot. "Bishop, let's hit that smaller ghost with a Heat Wave attack - we need to take him out as soon as we can! In the meantime... Um, I'll be over here." As he spoke, he dived for cover behind the stand, cowering in fear, leaving the Hoothoot to stand alone and follow his orders...

Originally Posted by scytherdude30
no no no you need an empoleon as your powerhouse da listen to me man I AM THE BOMB

Originally Posted by Zincspider

Yes, someone is getting 'killed'... HOORAY FOR CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT!....

Remember that fear is just excitement in need of an attitude adjustment.

((Hello, everyone! After getting permission from the mods, I have decided to assign my group a unique color in order to help me find your posts in the thread more quickly and easily when writing updates. Therefore, if you are in my group, I expect you to respond to updates using our group color, which is #9933FF. If you can't remember that nifty little hexadecimal code, just copy it from my list of updates and you can't go wrong. Also, so you know, the # symbol is not necessary when writing the code for our color, though I use it out of habit. Enjoy~

Also, welcome to Itzatrap! Enjoy your time here at the Haunted Theme Park...))

Itzatrap- Deceptively cute and childish with its bright colors and cartoon smiles, many visitors to the Haunted Theme Park mistakenly assume that Mantine Mania is the "safer" option amidst the cursed, corrupted mechanical marvels that fill the Phantom Isle. Rob, however, is under no such delusion; keeping the park's gristly past in mind, the young man who now approaches Mantine Mania is fully aware that this former kiddie ride is capable nowadays of just as many thrills and chills as the other Theme Park attractions. Rob thinks to himself that he is surrounded by the smell of mystery as he travels through the Park... Perhaps the true mystery is what mystery actually smells like. Is it the soft, playful scent of popcorn that drifts from empty, long-abandoned stands? Is it the oddly crisp scent of the abnormally cool air that suffocates the Summer breeze as it attempts to breathe warmth into the Park? Is it the faint, yet distinct tinny smell that just blew past Rob's nostrils, which reminds him quite disturbingly of blood? Whatever it is, there is certainly an indistinguishable, yet ominous something in the air here that sends chills down Rob's spine. Not wanting to be alone in such a place, Rob calls out Judis, who seems overly enthusiastic about the spooky atmosphere in which she finds herself. Perhaps it is the darkness within her typing that draws her to this place. Either way, she is happy to be exploring Mantine Mania, though seems slightly indignant at the fact that she cannot go out exploring on her own. Like a rebellious child, she is reigned in by her trainer with the half-joking statement that Rob may need her for "protection." Certainly, in a place like this, one can never be too safe.

The Mantine Mania lobby is full of dust and smells faintly of mold, clearly having been abandoned for a long time. Beneath the dirt and graffiti, old signs hint at the popularity of the ride in its heyday, and the joy of land and sea adventures for both children and trainers alike. Three different "breeds" of Mantine car are featured, advertised fairly equally in the lobby, with the benefits of each clearly being played up. One Mantine boasts the ability to "fly" above the forest and lakes fabricated for the ride, with clear top and bottom to give the wonderous illusion of flying through the air. Another Mantine, which "surfs" along the river, is advertised as being a wonderful option for more adventurous children, with flume-like plunges to really get one's heart going. Finally, there is a Mantine car shaped like a little submarine, which "dives" beneath the water to give the rider an up-close and personal look at the marine Pokemon which inhabit the undersea world of Mantine River. All three options sound enticing when reading their descriptions, though Rob can't help but wonder how the "scenic, Pokemon-filled" forest and "beautiful blue depths" of the river have changed since the ride's abandonment...

As Rob and Judis consider their options, the faint sound of rustling echoes from behind the pair. The two turn around, and see nothing... Was it just their imagination? Certainly, rustling could be caused by a number of things, including harmless breezes. Exploring the lobby might be a good option if the pair is curious about that strange little sound, or they may decide to continue into the Mantine Mania ride and ignore the noise. After all, what could be more thrilling than the very ride itself?

What will Rob and Judis do?

Dark Searchman- Questions multiply in Hyrem's head as the situation he finds himself in grows more and more intense. Who is the Lady who covets eyes? Why is the Frillish being referred to as "brother"? Where did his Frillish find all of these comrades in such a short time? The answers may be concealed within the dark, murky depths, but for now, the desire to repent for past transgressions is too great for Hyrem to resist the call of battle. Hyrem chooses to literally illuminate the battlefield instead of metaphorically attempting to shed light on these mysteries, and calls upon Delilah. The little Chinchou's glowing anglers and bright smile warms Hyrem's heart a bit, and cuts through the gloomy atmosphere. The zombies call out their Pokemon, which strangely do not materialize in a flash of light; instead, they seem to materialize from pools of darkness which seep out of the Pokeballs like tar. Eyeless, zombie versions of Igglybuff, Mime Jr., Togepi, Cleffa, Wynaut, Azurill and Pichu take form and shape, with the same vicious expressions on their faces as their trainers. The leader's Togepi, in particular, looks quite menacing.

Chinchou begins the battle with a surprisingly bright and overwhelming Flash. Hyrem is not sure how, but in the moments when the attack is unleashed, the light is so bright that the sea becomes a brilliant, blinding white. In that moment, Hyrem is completely blinded, and feels himself being dragged away by a jelly-like appendage. As Hyrem's vision eventually returns, he sees that both he and Delilah are being spirited away at full speed by Frillish; Hyrem, of course, is being pulled away by his buddy, while Delilah seems to be happily holding the hand of a beautiful pink female Frillish, who seems intent on escaping the zombies and their Pokemon. The female has a similar collar to the male Frillish, hinting that she, too, may have been a rental as well. "Hurry! As fast as you can, brother!" The female Frillish says in human tongue, who is pulling you as hard as his tentacles can pull. "Frill frill," the male responds... Perhaps he has already forgotten how to speak in his "native" tongue. Hyrem also notices that there don't seem to be any other Frillish... Hyrem wonders where they could have gone. The pink Frillish turns to Hyrem, a sad look in her clear blue eyes. The zombies seem to be dots in the ocean, far away from Hyrem, Delilah and the pair of Frillish. Even so, Hyrem gets the feeling that stopping for a quick rest would likely be a bad idea.

"Oh, my dear friend... What have they done? Why must the greed of the Harvester of Eyes be so immense?" There seems to be tears in the little pink Frillish's eyes as she turns to Hyrem's Frillish companion. "I will be strong, brother. I will be the one to kill him."

"FRILL FRILL," the blue Frillish responds angrily.

"But... but we've tried that, brother. We've tried! We tried and we failed! You were there when she turned our baby sister! You saw the way our flesh and blood... the way she looked at us, back there! She threatened to kill you!" The pink Frillish seems to be getting more and more agitated.

"Frill. Frillish Frill. Fri-lli" The blue Frillish snaps back.

"You are an idealist and a fool," The pink Frillish says with a slightly vicious tone. The Frillish responds in his own language, and turns to you. "My brother says that the decision should be yours," the pink Frillish translates with a sigh. "He says that if we defeat the Harvester of Eyes, we may be able to reverse the process. Your only other option is to let us kill you, mercifully, so that you may become a Frillish, as we did."

"Frill-frill," The male Frillish looks at Hyrem pleadingly, as if urging him not to take the easy way out. "We... we win." Frillish attempts to say, with a strong nod. The female Frillish shakes her head.

"Seems as though his mind is made up. Are we to head to her Chambers, then?" The pink Frillish turns to Hyrem, awaiting his response.

MarbleZone- If Calandra's humming could produce such a strong, heart-wrenching effect on its own, Levin can only imagine what a full-blown performance could do to him. This is one encore that he is not willing to sit through; despite the consequences that may result from revealing his position, Levin decides that he would rather risk the wrath of the odd pair in the middle of the lobby than endure any more of Calandra's beautiful, yet decidedly haunted "music". Of course, with Crix making his presence very well known, it seems as if Levin doesn't really have any choice in the matter.

Calandra notices Crix before she recognizes that Levin is present; the sight of the little Elekid stops her mid-breath, as she bends down to get a closer look at the curious electric-type. "Hello there, little one! Hehe, I bet you've never seen a human's ghost before, have you?" Calandra seems amused by Elekid's antics, and does nothing to stop him from sticking his hand in and out of her partner's transparent form. Levin can't help but notice that even Calandra's laugh has a certain melodic quality to it. Her ghostly partner, while not nearly as amused as Calandra, at least does not appear hostile to Levin's adventurous Pokemon. Instead, the spectre seems more curious than anything else.

"Hmm... I wonder what an Elekid would be doing here..." The ghostly man says with a quizzical look, before noticing Levin standing up behind the counter. Calandra, who is already pulling out a Pokeball from a well-hidden pocket in her dress in preparation to attempt to catch the Elekid, is stopped by her partner gently grabbing her arm. Calandra looks up, notices Levin, and immediately repockets the Pokeball with some measure of embarrassment. It is abundantly clear to both Calandra and her partner that Levin is nervous and stumbling for an excuse; the ghostly figure seems to derive some dark sort of amusement at Levin's fumbling attempt at communication, a small smirk spreading across his face. Calandra, on the other hand, seems strangely relieved.

"I'm glad you spoke up, Levin! I honestly thought there was no other living person here..." Calandra giggles a bit, though there's a certain sadness in that laughter. "My name is Calandra, and the gallant ghost beside me is my former partner, Orfeo. Oh, I hope you're not here for Talent Night at the Phantom Isle Hotel..." Calandra shakes her head. "I am afraid the living are not usually welcomed very kindly. Why, it's a wonder that I've even been-"

"If the act is good enough, he'll most assuredly be welcomed." Orfeo's smirk widens. "Let's just say that the audience has a much higher standard for living acts than dead ones, and their expressions of disapproval are often fatal to those who have not already seen their end. Then again..." Orfeo pauses dramatically; Levin notices that something in his behavior and mannerisms suggests a background in theater. "If you manage to impress the judges, the rewards are quite great. I know Calandra here will be an incredible hit!" Orfeo gleams with pride as he pats his partner on the back.

"Honestly, I'm just happy to have an audience that can listen to my music without... well, you know." Calandra smiles sheepishly. "If you do decide to come to the show, Levin, you may want to leave when I start to sing. My voice... well, it tends to... it tends to have an effect on people. Anyway, you and your Pokemon wouldn't happen to have a talent, would they? If not, I heard that they're looking for people and pokemon to help out with the event... You know, handing out programs and stuff. I bet they'll pay you well!"

Orfeo laughs. "A living volunteer at Talent Night? Haha, sounds like someone with a death wish... He'll be subjected to more tortures and pranks by the patrons than a freshman getting hazed by a group of frat boys. Then again, it is true... They don't just pay well for talent; they'll also pay well for good ol' fashioned hard work." Orfeo turns to Levin, locking eyes with the living trainer. "My suggestion to you? Forget you even saw us. In fact, forget you even HEARD about the talent show. There are other places in this Hotel to explore, aren't there?"

Orfeo has a point; there are certainly other places in the Hotel Levin could go; after all, he did just pick up a key to one of the rooms, and there are plenty of other locales within the hotel that are just waiting to be explored. That said, the opportunity to go to a ghostly talent show, even as a stagehand or front of house, is certainly once in a lifetime.

How will Levin and Crix respond?

Meetan- Much like the mechanical Rapidash, Alice is eager to cheer her Pokemon on and see Swinub emerge victorious from the battle. In fact, it is taking a great deal of restraint for Alice not to jump into the fray herself! With the two Pokemon seeming to have taken roughly equal amounts of damage, the fight could most certainly go either way, and both Alice and Swinub are keenly aware of this fact. In an attempt to lower the attack power of the vicious Purrloin, Swinub lays the Charm on thick, batting his little piggy eyes and giving the Purrloin an adorable little nuzzle. How cute! How could anyone not resist this adorable display of affection? Well, apparently this Purrloin is less than thrilled at being so doted upon by a creature that has just viciously attacked the round before, and displays its clear intention for aggression with a particularly nasty Growl. Swinub seems quite shocked by the growl, especially in response to such a convincing display of cuteness and Alice notices that his attempt at a Bite seems less earnest than it might originally have been, but OUCH - right in the tail once again! Going in for the fake cute act apparently had its benefits when it cames to positioning, and it seems as if Swinub has been particularly lucky with his bite attacks this round. The Purrloin howls in pain as the perfectly-executed attack does a respectable amount of damage for something that would normally not be very effective on a dark-type like Purrloin. Now Purrloin is particularly mad, and Hones its Claws in preparation for revenge on the sharp-toothed Swinub. Swinub, meanwhile, is preparing some particularly cold air within his body, which is blown out at his opponent in the form of Powder Snow. The Purrloin seems quite upset by the barrage of snow, and shivers a bit with cold damage, but does not seem to have been hit with any long-lasting effects. Channelling its pent-up rage, it goes in for a Slash on Swinub, who fruitlessly attempts to dodge out of the way; the attack hits Swinub in the side, and does a decent amount of damage, though Alice can't help but shake the feeling that the attack could have been a lot worse.

Swinub is still hovering around 3/5 health, while Purrloin is currently at 2/5 health. If Alice's intent is to capture the wily critter, she may want to attempt the action soon, before it faints.

How will Alice and Swinub respond?

Balmund- Both William and Balmund are painfully aware that their pursuers are closing in, and that, indeed, the force they both sensed earlier is not only aware of their presence, but is also aggressively closing in on them as they speak. William quickly scarfs down his pizza, and doesn't even bother to pick up his tray and bring it to the waste disposal unit. Balmund senses that the pair are pretty screwed, and suggests flying to the station instead of walking. At first, William's facial expression seems to indicate that he is in favor of the idea, but as he begins speaking, that expression quickly changes... "Listen, Duke, flying would be awesome right now, but there's one problem..." As William speaks, his eyes seem transfixed behind Balmund; when Balmund turns to see what has captured his new friend's attention, he sees two shadows rising from the ground. Strangely, the parkgoers do not seem to notice the shadowy figures that seem to be phasing in through the earth, continuing to eat, talk and laugh as if nothing out of the ordinary is going on. William stares grimly at the two figures, stating what Balmund likely already knows; "They've already found us. Quick, Duke, call out your Pokemon! There's only two right now... If we can take 'em out quick, we can jump on Salamence and fly to the station before more show up! C'MON OUT, AVERIL!"

William quickly pulls off the only Pokeball on his belt, and activates the device in order to unleash the form of a particularly tough-looking Haxorus. Averil growls menacingly at the shadows, which are now taking on the form of two Dusknoir. While the parkgoers don't seem to notice the Dusknoir, they definitely notice William's Haxorus, and seem confused at William's incredibly defensive stance. The strange thing about these particular Dusknoir, however, is that their eyes and markings are a strange, glowing blue, while the rest of their bodies seem entirely composed of transparent shadows... Perhaps these creatures are the minions of the God Dialga. Certainly, they look the part. The pair of Dusknoir advance, and William turns to Balmund, whispering to him frantically; "We need to figure out how to make this battle believable to these parkgoers, or they're gonna call the cops on us. They can't see the Minions like we can..." In fact, some children are actually circling around Averil, mesmerized by the strange, yet powerful Pokemon. If Balmund doesn't think quickly, not only will he and William look like total nuts attacking nothing, but some bystanders may get hurt, as well. He'll need to think of a very convincing lie to get this battle going!

What will Balmund do?

uhhhhh- An eerie sort of deja vu overwhelms Connor as he realizes that the overwhelming, horrific feeling of fearing for his life is actually quite familiar... He tries to recall the vision in the mirror which followed his gristly death, but the memories do not seem to be coming easily. These tiny bits of memories surfacing into Connor's conscious mind certainly make him wonder what horrors might lurk under the surface of his unconscious... Even so, the topic is one better dwelled upon when not being threatened with permanent Drifloon transformation; an oddly appropriate fate, considering Connor's innate lack of direction. Perhaps, in an eerie, twisted way, the haunted world in which he finds himself is trying to send him a message...

As the battle rages on, Gaspard produces a glowing egg out of nowhere, absorbing the Softboiled creation into himself; after doing so, he appears a bit healthier than before. Drifloon attempts another Cut attack with his sharp scissors, but finds himself having to dodge a brutal Ominous Wind from the demon balloon. Fortunately, the little 'floon avoids significant damage, and motions Gaspard with his scissors to come rejoin the battle. Gaspard flings himself forward with incredible gusto, hitting hard with a Fury Cutter that causes the balloon to hiss with pain as hole on its left side becomes even more damaging to the creature's overall structure. The Drifloon nudges himself beside Gaspard and further tears open the gash with his scissors, Cutting the hole enough that half of the balloon appears completely torn; the other half hangs on for dear life, and sucks in air from the giant gash in an attempt to Swallow the Drifloon whole! Connor had no idea a swallow attack could work that way, but this strange creature seems to be capable of things beyond the capabilities of ordinary Pokemon. With a tug from Gaspard, the Drifloon narrowly escapes being sucked into the demon's body. Gaspard, hoping to end this battle once and for all, unleashes a Seed Bomb in hopes of exploding the balloon to pieces. While it blows out a big hole in the right side, the effect is not as large as Gaspard would have hoped. Drifloon attempts a Whirlwind in order to blow the balloon apart, but only ends up blowing the rubber body around a bit. The balloon then attempts to Swallow Gaspard; seems as if Connor's little monkey is particularly unlucky, as the little purple monkey is drawn right into the attack, and finds himself tangled in the cut balloon's rubber body! He screams and flails in desperation as the life is slowly sucked out of him... Drifloon shrieks, attempting to cut Gaspard free, but only seems to be getting small bits of the balloon untangled (and plenty of clumps of Gaspard's fur). The Drifloon seems absolutely frantic to save Gaspard, his little, black eyes wide with fear.

Paired with Gaspard's Cursed status, there won't be long before Gaspard is completely drained of life energy by the evil balloon. The situation seems dire, and if Connor doesn't act quickly, it may be Gaspard who ends up suffering a fate once intended for Connor.

What will Connor do?

mon1010- ((In the future, I think it would be helpful if you specified which target you were aiming for with single-target attacks like psybeam when there are multiple targets. It makes writing the results of the round less confusing on my end.))

As the bloody, mangled plushies slowly make their way forward towards Scott and the strange girl, the Houndour referred to as Melanie charges toward the Arcanine plushie before the girl can even issue an order, using a vicious Bite attack that tears the Arcanine's plush head clean off. The head rolls around on the floor for a bit before stopping, its red eyes flickering out; before the head goes completely still, however, it unleashes a Hypnosis attack on the Houndour; while the fierce hound appears somewhat drowsy and disoriented by the hypnotizing gaze, she refuses to go down to sleep that easily. Strangely, the plush body continues to move at the same, steady pace towards Melanie's trainer, chanting Abandoned over and over again. The girl, unnerved by the unrelenting pace of the plushie towards her and complete disregard of her Houndour, tries running farther into the maze, but notices to her horror after turning the corner that the two trainers are trapped in a dead end. Meanwhile, Shaana lets loose a Psybeam toward the plushie pair; unfortunately, in the disorienting mirror-world, the Munna finds her psybeam bouncing off the reflection of the Eevee plushie and down the corridor, doing no damage. The Eevee plushie seems to be moving towards Scott and Gulpin, though unlike its vocal partner, the Eevee says absolutely nothing. Instead, its soulless, glowing eyes seem fixed on Gulpin, who refuses to look at the creepy plush figure. The Eevee unleashes a nasty Screech in Scott's direction, presumably in an attempt to further frighten the Gulpin and lower its defenses, but it seems as if its fear could not be any greater and its defenses could not be any lower.

Realizing that Melanie will not back down, the girl decides that she may as well give her Pokemon some orders; "Melanie, try to get them to retreat with a Roar," she shouts encouragingly. Melanie unleashes as mighty a roar as she can muster; however, it seems to have no effect on the two advancing monstrosities. Munna unleashes another Psybeam, as ordered; this time, the attack is aimed towards a plushie instead of a reflection, though it only barely scrapes the Arcanine's body. The Arcanine head, which appeared still and lifeless before, suddenly animates to Houndour's surprise, a spectral tongue giving Houndour a disgusting Lick. Fortunately, aside from the bit of damage, Houndour does not seem to have been affected by the often paralytic effects of this attack. The head becomes "dead" again, though it seems as if its supposed lifelessness is not to be trusted. Meanwhile, an eerie, glowing Will-o-wisp makes its way toward Shaana, though she is able to dodge out of the way of its explosion, avoiding a particularly nasty burn. Both plushies continue their unnerving advance. As Scott rocks the Gulpin gently, it seems to calm down somewhat. The giant tears, at least, seem to be subsiding, which have turned into big, uncontrollable sniffles. Gulpin looks up at Scott with a strangely trusting look, as if hoping that he and his Munna will help make the evil monsters go away.

"Melanie, Smog!" She orders the Houndour, who unleashes a cloud of black, putrid smoke towards the Arcanine's body. It seems to have little effect on the demonic plush, who continues its advance as resolutely as ever. Shaana's third Psybeam shows great improvement from the first two; this time, the Arcanine body is directly nailed, piercing a hole right through the Arcanine plushie's chest. Scott can hear something within the plush screaming in pain as if hit by a super-effective attack, which suggests that there may be more to these plushies than meets the eye... In response to Shaana's killer attack, it seems as if both plushies now have turned their attention to the flower-covered Pokemon. The Arcanine body glows red and unleashes a Night Shade that directly hits Munna, the dark beam blasting Munna on impact with significant power. Eevee decides to blast Munna with a Night Shade of its own; fortunately, Shaana is able to move out of the way before being hit twice by the same attack.

Scott finds himself wondering why the plush Pokemon are so intent on their advance toward the girl and the Gulpin she was originally carrying... What consequences will they face of the pair of possessed toys make their way down the corridor? With the advance of the plushies, the girl has retreated all the way to the back of the corridor, against the mirrored wall. Scott may wish to do the same if he wants to keep Gulpin away from these creatures. After seeing how quickly they move in combat, Scott estimates that three rounds remain until the plushies make it to the end of the corridor.

((Hello, everyone! After getting permission from the mods, I have decided to assign my group a unique color in order to help me find your posts in the thread more quickly and easily when writing updates. Therefore, if you are in my group, I expect you to respond to updates using our group color, which is #9933FF. If you can't remember that nifty little hexadecimal code, just copy it from my list of updates and you can't go wrong. Also, so you know, the # symbol is not necessary when writing the code for our color, though I use it out of habit. Enjoy~))

Meetan- Much like the mechanical Rapidash, Alice is eager to cheer her Pokemon on and see Swinub emerge victorious from the battle. In fact, it is taking a great deal of restraint for Alice not to jump into the fray herself! With the two Pokemon seeming to have taken roughly equal amounts of damage, the fight could most certainly go either way, and both Alice and Swinub are keenly aware of this fact. In an attempt to lower the attack power of the vicious Purrloin, Swinub lays the Charm on thick, batting his little piggy eyes and giving the Purrloin an adorable little nuzzle. How cute! How could anyone not resist this adorable display of affection? Well, apparently this Purrloin is less than thrilled at being so doted upon by a creature that has just viciously attacked the round before, and displays its clear intention for aggression with a particularly nasty Growl. Swinub seems quite shocked by the growl, especially in response to such a convincing display of cuteness and Alice notices that his attempt at a Bite seems less earnest than it might originally have been, but OUCH - right in the tail once again! Going in for the fake cute act apparently had its benefits when it cames to positioning, and it seems as if Swinub has been particularly lucky with his bite attacks this round. The Purrloin howls in pain as the perfectly-executed attack does a respectable amount of damage for something that would normally not be very effective on a dark-type like Purrloin. Now Purrloin is particularly mad, and Hones its Claws in preparation for revenge on the sharp-toothed Swinub. Swinub, meanwhile, is preparing some particularly cold air within his body, which is blown out at his opponent in the form of Powder Snow. The Purrloin seems quite upset by the barrage of snow, and shivers a bit with cold damage, but does not seem to have been hit with any long-lasting effects. Channelling its pent-up rage, it goes in for a Slash on Swinub, who fruitlessly attempts to dodge out of the way; the attack hits Swinub in the side, and does a decent amount of damage, though Alice can't help but shake the feeling that the attack could have been a lot worse.

Swinub is still hovering around 3/5 health, while Purrloin is currently at 2/5 health. If Alice's intent is to capture the wily critter, she may want to attempt the action soon, before it faints.

How will Alice and Swinub respond?

Alice bit her lip at the sight of the Purrloin's Slash attack, wincing backward as the claws dashed across her Swinub's hardened side. "This thing's a tough little cookie, isn't it?" She asked her team, reaching cautiously for a Poke Ball (8/10). "Swinub, give it a little Mud Slap! I want this thing weakened, but not down and out! I'm gonna go for it!" She called, waiting for her ice piggy to execute the accuracy-downing attack. Once it had been fulfilled, regardless of the effectiveness, the girl took her aim and hurled the sphere towards the enemy, hoping for a successful capture. "Come on! This one's for Mitsuko!" She exclaimed alloud, thinking of her feline-obsessed friend.

Itzatrap- Deceptively cute and childish with its bright colors and cartoon smiles, many visitors to the Haunted Theme Park mistakenly assume that Mantine Mania is the "safer" option amidst the cursed, corrupted mechanical marvels that fill the Phantom Isle. Rob, however, is under no such delusion; keeping the park's gristly past in mind, the young man who now approaches Mantine Mania is fully aware that this former kiddie ride is capable nowadays of just as many thrills and chills as the other Theme Park attractions. Rob thinks to himself that he is surrounded by the smell of mystery as he travels through the Park... Perhaps the true mystery is what mystery actually smells like. Is it the soft, playful scent of popcorn that drifts from empty, long-abandoned stands? Is it the oddly crisp scent of the abnormally cool air that suffocates the Summer breeze as it attempts to breathe warmth into the Park? Is it the faint, yet distinct tinny smell that just blew past Rob's nostrils, which reminds him quite disturbingly of blood? Whatever it is, there is certainly an indistinguishable, yet ominous something in the air here that sends chills down Rob's spine. Not wanting to be alone in such a place, Rob calls out Judis, who seems overly enthusiastic about the spooky atmosphere in which she finds herself. Perhaps it is the darkness within her typing that draws her to this place. Either way, she is happy to be exploring Mantine Mania, though seems slightly indignant at the fact that she cannot go out exploring on her own. Like a rebellious child, she is reigned in by her trainer with the half-joking statement that Rob may need her for "protection." Certainly, in a place like this, one can never be too safe.

The Mantine Mania lobby is full of dust and smells faintly of mold, clearly having been abandoned for a long time. Beneath the dirt and graffiti, old signs hint at the popularity of the ride in its heyday, and the joy of land and sea adventures for both children and trainers alike. Three different "breeds" of Mantine car are featured, advertised fairly equally in the lobby, with the benefits of each clearly being played up. One Mantine boasts the ability to "fly" above the forest and lakes fabricated for the ride, with clear top and bottom to give the wonderous illusion of flying through the air. Another Mantine, which "surfs" along the river, is advertised as being a wonderful option for more adventurous children, with flume-like plunges to really get one's heart going. Finally, there is a Mantine car shaped like a little submarine, which "dives" beneath the water to give the rider an up-close and personal look at the marine Pokemon which inhabit the undersea world of Mantine River. All three options sound enticing when reading their descriptions, though Rob can't help but wonder how the "scenic, Pokemon-filled" forest and "beautiful blue depths" of the river have changed since the ride's abandonment...

As Rob and Judis consider their options, the faint sound of rustling echoes from behind the pair. The two turn around, and see nothing... Was it just their imagination? Certainly, rustling could be caused by a number of things, including harmless breezes. Exploring the lobby might be a good option if the pair is curious about that strange little sound, or they may decide to continue into the Mantine Mania ride and ignore the noise. After all, what could be more thrilling than the very ride itself?

What will Rob and Judis do?

(Thanks again for updating me! Forgot Judis is in the Daycare so I'll unfortunately recall her from the end of the update. =( I'll let you out again Judis!)

"What's this?" the young trainer asked himself as he saw the different types of Mantine's, all of which demanded to be riden by the trainer and his companion. "Flying Mantine...hmmm." Rob quickly imagined the flying Mantine stop in the middle of the ride, and then plummet. "I don't think we would make if it broke down. Don't want to get stuck there with no way out, or if it comes crashing down." In his younger years, while visiting his family, he went to a carnival. He could not wait to try out every single ride, that is until he got to the Ferrathorn Wheel. The traumatizing event left him stranded for hours, which as child multiplied to days for him. He never got over getting in machines that took him up in the air...

"Surfing Mantine..." No visions of doom came upon this one, until he thought to himself, "Guess I can swim should something go wrong...unless it is filled with dangerous man-eating Pokémon..." "Diving Mantine.." "I could also swim..." While all options definitely seemed like fun, albeit a little scary (A lot in the flying Mantine's case), he could not help to think worst possible scenarios for the old rides that looks like they weren't that well maintained anymore. He then remembered his ground type friend. "I don't think I should take her just yet, especially to a water ride." There was an anxious look on the Sandile as she waited for Rob to make a decision, looking into her eyes, which were desperate to have an adventure with her trainer. A faint sound of rustling echoes was then heard by both Rob and Judis, which alarmed the trainer quite a bit as he turned around to take a look. Judis on the other hand seemed thrilled that there were signs of something possibly being there.

The trainer grabbed her Pokéball, and under protest, she got absorbed by the Pokéball, which he then clipped to his belt. "Sorry girl, I'll let you out again soon." he said, still keeping a nervous eye aroubd as he then grabbed another Pokéball and pressed the opening mechanism. A light emerged from inside the ball, which took the shape of a quadruped, with white fur and black tail and something that looked like a horn on the side of her head. "Absol!" the young creature growled, quite excited that she is in such an amazing place, at least for her. "Melantha, I think we should go back to the lobby to see what that noise I heard was, be alert for anything suspicious, okay?" She nodded in agreement as he continued, "After all, if there is nothing, we can come back after we check it out right?" She nodded once again, "Let's go then!" He said, trying to sound as excited as Melantha appeared to be as they started to investigate the origin of the mysterious sound.

mon1010- ((In the future, I think it would be helpful if you specified which target you were aiming for with single-target attacks like psybeam when there are multiple targets. It makes writing the results of the round less confusing on my end.))

As the bloody, mangled plushies slowly make their way forward towards Scott and the strange girl, the Houndour referred to as Melanie charges toward the Arcanine plushie before the girl can even issue an order, using a vicious Bite attack that tears the Arcanine's plush head clean off. The head rolls around on the floor for a bit before stopping, its red eyes flickering out; before the head goes completely still, however, it unleashes a Hypnosis attack on the Houndour; while the fierce hound appears somewhat drowsy and disoriented by the hypnotizing gaze, she refuses to go down to sleep that easily. Strangely, the plush body continues to move at the same, steady pace towards Melanie's trainer, chanting Abandoned over and over again. The girl, unnerved by the unrelenting pace of the plushie towards her and complete disregard of her Houndour, tries running farther into the maze, but notices to her horror after turning the corner that the two trainers are trapped in a dead end. Meanwhile, Shaana lets loose a Psybeam toward the plushie pair; unfortunately, in the disorienting mirror-world, the Munna finds her psybeam bouncing off the reflection of the Eevee plushie and down the corridor, doing no damage. The Eevee plushie seems to be moving towards Scott and Gulpin, though unlike its vocal partner, the Eevee says absolutely nothing. Instead, its soulless, glowing eyes seem fixed on Gulpin, who refuses to look at the creepy plush figure. The Eevee unleashes a nasty Screech in Scott's direction, presumably in an attempt to further frighten the Gulpin and lower its defenses, but it seems as if its fear could not be any greater and its defenses could not be any lower.

Realizing that Melanie will not back down, the girl decides that she may as well give her Pokemon some orders; "Melanie, try to get them to retreat with a Roar," she shouts encouragingly. Melanie unleashes as mighty a roar as she can muster; however, it seems to have no effect on the two advancing monstrosities. Munna unleashes another Psybeam, as ordered; this time, the attack is aimed towards a plushie instead of a reflection, though it only barely scrapes the Arcanine's body. The Arcanine head, which appeared still and lifeless before, suddenly animates to Houndour's surprise, a spectral tongue giving Houndour a disgusting Lick. Fortunately, aside from the bit of damage, Houndour does not seem to have been affected by the often paralytic effects of this attack. The head becomes "dead" again, though it seems as if its supposed lifelessness is not to be trusted. Meanwhile, an eerie, glowing Will-o-wisp makes its way toward Shaana, though she is able to dodge out of the way of its explosion, avoiding a particularly nasty burn. Both plushies continue their unnerving advance. As Scott rocks the Gulpin gently, it seems to calm down somewhat. The giant tears, at least, seem to be subsiding, which have turned into big, uncontrollable sniffles. Gulpin looks up at Scott with a strangely trusting look, as if hoping that he and his Munna will help make the evil monsters go away.

"Melanie, Smog!" She orders the Houndour, who unleashes a cloud of black, putrid smoke towards the Arcanine's body. It seems to have little effect on the demonic plush, who continues its advance as resolutely as ever. Shaana's third Psybeam shows great improvement from the first two; this time, the Arcanine body is directly nailed, piercing a hole right through the Arcanine plushie's chest. Scott can hear something within the plush screaming in pain as if hit by a super-effective attack, which suggests that there may be more to these plushies than meets the eye... In response to Shaana's killer attack, it seems as if both plushies now have turned their attention to the flower-covered Pokemon. The Arcanine body glows red and unleashes a Night Shade that directly hits Munna, the dark beam blasting Munna on impact with significant power. Eevee decides to blast Munna with a Night Shade of its own; fortunately, Shaana is able to move out of the way before being hit twice by the same attack.

Scott finds himself wondering why the plush Pokemon are so intent on their advance toward the girl and the Gulpin she was originally carrying... What consequences will they face of the pair of possessed toys make their way down the corridor? With the advance of the plushies, the girl has retreated all the way to the back of the corridor, against the mirrored wall. Scott may wish to do the same if he wants to keep Gulpin away from these creatures. After seeing how quickly they move in combat, Scott estimates that three rounds remain until the plushies make it to the end of the corridor.

How will Scott and Shaana respond?

The haunted plushies reacted to Shaana's Psybeams using Pokemon attacks. Suddenly, the Pokemon nerd in him came out, and Scott whipped out his Pokedex from his pocket. These were most likely Ghost types, didn't have much of a reaction to melanie's Smog, and he knew Ghosts resisted Poison. Not to mention, they both used Night Shade, which is usually a move Ghosts types can learn. So he looked up Ghost Pokemon. A long list of Ghost type Pokemon came up.

Judging by the way that Arcanine plushie reacted to Shaana's Psybeam, it was likely possesed by something in the Gengar evolution line. It was also the only thing he could think of that could learn Lick, Hypnosis, and Night Shade. As it was part Poison, and therefore weak to Psychic. He wasn't sure what to make of that Eevee plushie, so he looked up Pokemon that learned Screech. From his findings, the only Pokemon that learned Screech were Shuppet and Banette. So, he closed the Pokedex, and put it away.

"Shaana, use another Psybeam on the Arcanine plushie, then use Yawn" Then he had to think of what to do about the Eevee plushie. He remebered an incident involving Shaana, and a Purrlion Shaana hoped was male, on Valentines Day. Long story short, she gained a special move from the situation. "Then use Pursuit on the Eevee." He then followed this girl's example, and ran to the back of the corridor against a mirrored wall to keep this Gulpin away from these things, as they looked like they were after him for some reason. The rocking seemed to calm him down a bit, as he was no longer crying as much as he was before. Hopefully keeping his distance from these things would keep him that way.

He neglected to mention that downtown they call this place Camp Blood.

((Happy Friday the 13th, everyone! Here's a quick little extra-special update in celebration of such a wonderful day~))

Meetan- Pokeball at the ready, Alice urges her Swinub to perform a Mud Slap that will weaken the Purrloin, but won't knock it down for the count. Heeding his orders, he quickly flings a bit of mud toward's the Purrloin's face; unable to dodge completely in time, The Purrloin is slapped right in the shoulder, with her right eye taking some mud and impeding the vision out of that eye somewhat. With one good eye, however, Purrloin can clearly see that the battle is not going in its favor, and claws at Swinub with a particularly vicious Fury Swipes; unlike Swinub, who is following orders not to faint the devious Pokemon, this vicious Purrloin is in for the kill, and its five ghastly swipes do some major damage. Looks like it's time to act fast and throw that Pokeball before poor Swinub is shred to ribbons!

Alice takes a deep breath and throws the Pokeball, hopeful to catch the dark feline for a dear friend who is obsessed with such creatures. The Purrloin is barely able to get out an angry "PURR" before the ball's red light engulfs the Purrloin, sucking it into the Pokeball with incredible force. The closed Pokeball wiggles wildly, as the Purrloin attempts with all of its might to break free, before the shaking ultimately dies down, and stops altogether. Congratulations! Level 4 Male was caught. One wonders what kind of luck catching a dark-type cat Pokemon on Friday the 13th will bring...

At the sight of your capture, the mechanical Rapidash bounds up on its hind legs and whinnies excitedly. "Those are some great moves, pardner! Yer' little Swinub fought mighty hard. I'm glad t'see that I'm travelin' with a trainer that's packin' some heat." The Rapidash neighs happily. "A'course, I gotta warn you, lil' lady... The journey might not be so easy from here on out. My path likely ain't a pretty one, but if yer' willin' t'come along, I can at least promise ya' some wild adventures." The Rapidash pauses for a moment. "It's up t'you. I ain't like that fortune tellin' lady... I don't know what the future's gonna hold. Then again, I know Fate ain't the type to wake up an ol' bag-a-bolts like me for nothin'. There's gotta be a reason... I just gotta know why... Why I remember things. Machines ain't s'posed to be able t'do that, right?" The horse tilts its head, as if Alice may have the answer to the questions the mechanical horse poses. Eventually, the mechanical Rapidash turns around and moseys on over to the Fortune Telling Tent. "Y'comin', darlin'?" The mechanical voice asks, turning toward Alice.

How will Alice respond?

Itzatrap- Rob and Melantha decide that the best course of action would be to search the lobby for the source of that suspicious rustling; after all, even if it turned out to be nothing, the rides would still be waiting for them. After so many years just sitting there, it's not like they'd pick up and leave in the time it takes to make a quick search around the lobby, right?

Rob and Melantha search around the lobby, hoping to locate the mysterious noise they heard before. For a couple of moments, it seems as if the lobby is completely lifeless; no signs of motion can be detected, not even a light breeze, which is strange considering the sound they heard before. After those few moments, however, they eventually hear the sound again; Melantha reacts quickly, using her sharp hearing in order to trace the sound to a small hole in the wall. The hole is about 6 inches high, 6 inches wide and rather unremarkable; even so, Melantha growls ominously at the hole, as if to indicate that whatever happened to make the noise happens to be inside.

Of course, there's a rather obvious problem; neither Rob nor Melantha can fit inside that hole. Even so, there are plenty of options that Rob could try. He could attempt to lure the creature out with a berry or some other object. He could order Melantha to attack and make the hole wider; after all, who's going to yell at him for a little bit of vandalism in this abandoned park? He could even try calling out a smaller Pokemon who would be able to investigate. Certainly, Rob is not limited to these options, as he is a free man who can do whatsoever he likes, provided he is willing to face the consequences of his actions.

What will Rob and Melantha do?

Mon1010- Using some deductive logic and the help of his Pokedex, Scott quickly figures out that there are likely Pokemon possessing the plushies, and based on the attacks that they've used so far, he can even pinpoint the exact evolutionary line of each attacker; the Arcanine appears to be possessed by some member of the Gengar evolutionary family, while the Eevee is possessed by either Shuppet or Banette. Of course, these deductions provide no help in terms of the motivation and intent of these plushie-possessing spectres, but at least these findings aid Scott in developing a solid battle strategy for his buddy Shaana.

Melanie leads the charge this round with another Bite; since the Arcanine plushie seems intent on heading towards her trainer, it seems as if a lot of her energy is being focused on that particular plush. This bite takes off one of the Arcanine's paws, revealing a ghostly, purple hand beneath. Seems as if this dark-type attack is also super-effective against the creature, who yelps with pain in response to the attack made by the Houndour's vicious fangs. Shaana tries to follow up with another super-effective Psybeam, but the Arcanine's body manages to dodge to the side in time, marking the first deviation in its forward-moving path since Scott and Shaana first laid eyes on the monstrous plush form. Seems as if the attacks are finally causing some hesitation; at least enough to cause them to deviate from their straight path, anyhow. The Arcanine responds with a nasty bit of Spite towards Houndour, laying a spooky curse on the dark puppy which limits the amount of times she can use her bite attack as the battle continues. "Eevee", who seems to like to copy its plush partner, also uses Spite, directing the attack towards Shaana; however, the curse does not seem to take hold, as Shaana seems to shrug off the attempt of the Eevee to freak her out.

Melanie is ordered by her trainer to try her Smog against the Eevee in attempt to poison it; however, Arcanine blocks the attack with its plush body, causing Melanie to completely miss the Eevee and do very little damage to the Arcanine. Shaana attempts a Yawn in order to cause the Arcanine to fall asleep, but this time, the Eevee acts as a shield for Arcanine; seems like this Eevee is an insominac or something, since it seems completely unphased by Shaana's attempt at making it drowsy. Arcanine, coming out from behind Eevee, attempts Hypnosis once again on the vicious Melanie, who once again is having none of this sleeping juju nonsense. She simply growls angrily in response. Eevee, seemingly tired of Melanie's impertinance, attempts a Shadow Sneak behind her; Melanie whips around and catches the particularly unlucky creature in her jaws, ripping the Eevee head clean off. Seems as if the creature within dodged the counterattack, though with the head of the Eevee gone, Scott can now see the true head of the Banette that inhabits the Eevee. Certainly, the gaze in the creature's eyes is highly unsettling, and Scott wonders what might be causing the creature to act so malevolently.

"A Banette," the girl exclaims. "I should have known! Melanie and Munna, I think it's time for a Beat Up! Shaana nods in response to the girl trainer's request, and both Melanie and Shaana wail on the Banette, with two super-effective strikes to its plushie "armor". Munna follows up the gang-style beating with a Pursuit she had learned from a Valentine's Day adventure, which seems to be coming in handy now; the super-effective attack has "Eevee" reeling, its Banette form clearly damaged by the brutality of the attack. "Arcanine" seems hellbent on sending Houndour to sleep, and attempts Hypnosis once more. Once again, this creature is shown to have some god-awful luck (perhaps it's the fact that it's Friday the 13th?) and once again fails to send the hyper Houndour to dreamland. The Eevee-Banette, who is certainly not backing down from this fight, attempts a Knock off on Shaana, but Munna is quick to float away from the Banette before it causes any damage with its potentially killer move.

Shaana and Melanie are still fighting fit, while Banette and her "Arcanine" partner have become like their plushies in that they have definitely seen better days. Two rounds remain until they close in on Gulpin and the girl who is training Melanie.

Gulpin is substantially calmer. He seems especially hopeful considering that the battle seems to be going the way of his allies.

((Happy Friday the 13th, everyone! Here's a quick little extra-special update in celebration of such a wonderful day~))

Meetan- Pokeball at the ready, Alice urges her Swinub to perform a Mud Slap that will weaken the Purrloin, but won't knock it down for the count. Heeding his orders, he quickly flings a bit of mud toward's the Purrloin's face; unable to dodge completely in time, The Purrloin is slapped right in the shoulder, with her right eye taking some mud and impeding the vision out of that eye somewhat. With one good eye, however, Purrloin can clearly see that the battle is not going in its favor, and claws at Swinub with a particularly vicious Fury Swipes; unlike Swinub, who is following orders not to faint the devious Pokemon, this vicious Purrloin is in for the kill, and its five ghastly swipes do some major damage. Looks like it's time to act fast and throw that Pokeball before poor Swinub is shred to ribbons!

Alice takes a deep breath and throws the Pokeball, hopeful to catch the dark feline for a dear friend who is obsessed with such creatures. The Purrloin is barely able to get out an angry "PURR" before the ball's red light engulfs the Purrloin, sucking it into the Pokeball with incredible force. The closed Pokeball wiggles wildly, as the Purrloin attempts with all of its might to break free, before the shaking ultimately dies down, and stops altogether. Congratulations! Level 4 Male was caught. One wonders what kind of luck catching a dark-type cat Pokemon on Friday the 13th will bring...

At the sight of your capture, the mechanical Rapidash bounds up on its hind legs and whinnies excitedly. "Those are some great moves, pardner! Yer' little Swinub fought mighty hard. I'm glad t'see that I'm travelin' with a trainer that's packin' some heat." The Rapidash neighs happily. "A'course, I gotta warn you, lil' lady... The journey might not be so easy from here on out. My path likely ain't a pretty one, but if yer' willin' t'come along, I can at least promise ya' some wild adventures." The Rapidash pauses for a moment. "It's up t'you. I ain't like that fortune tellin' lady... I don't know what the future's gonna hold. Then again, I know Fate ain't the type to wake up an ol' bag-a-bolts like me for nothin'. There's gotta be a reason... I just gotta know why... Why I remember things. Machines ain't s'posed to be able t'do that, right?" The horse tilts its head, as if Alice may have the answer to the questions the mechanical horse poses. Eventually, the mechanical Rapidash turns around and moseys on over to the Fortune Telling Tent. "Y'comin', darlin'?" The mechanical voice asks, turning toward Alice.

How will Alice respond?

Alice squealed, thrilled as she dashed forward to claim her Poke Ball, giving an acrobatic jump in which her heels nudged her behind. "Woohoo! My first official capture!" The girl cried, holding the ball up proudly. Indeed, there were more spheres on her person: another Love Ball containing her beloved Pineco, and two more with a Torchic she was awkward about and a Bagon. The first two had been adopted, the latter hatched. "My friend'll be so happy! We'll have to find somewhere in the park to send it to her right away. I'll tuck it safely in here." She added, burying it deep and safe into her bag.

The girl beamed over to Rapidash, head bobbing in full agreement. She was proud of that battle, as close as it was, and felt pride towards her Swinub. As the robot spoke, she crouched down to reward the piggy with some soft pets over his back, listening intently. What it said she already knew: no safety was garunteed and they could not see the future, but wild adventures lay ahead. Alice had already joined the Rapidash, and did not want to leave yet. She, too, wanted to uncover the mystery of Rapidash's memories, and even more than that, wanted to reach a happy end for her new companion.

"Yes! Coming!" The teenager called, looking at her Swinub. "You need a bit of a rest after that. Thank you so much, baby." With a loving kiss to his snout, he was returned to his own Love Ball. Once packed away, Alice hurried to follow Rapidash into the Fortune Teller's tent, feeling uncharacteristically brave and ready for whatever awaited them.

Balmund- Both William and Balmund are painfully aware that their pursuers are closing in, and that, indeed, the force they both sensed earlier is not only aware of their presence, but is also aggressively closing in on them as they speak. William quickly scarfs down his pizza, and doesn't even bother to pick up his tray and bring it to the waste disposal unit. Balmund senses that the pair are pretty screwed, and suggests flying to the station instead of walking. At first, William's facial expression seems to indicate that he is in favor of the idea, but as he begins speaking, that expression quickly changes... "Listen, Duke, flying would be awesome right now, but there's one problem..." As William speaks, his eyes seem transfixed behind Balmund; when Balmund turns to see what has captured his new friend's attention, he sees two shadows rising from the ground. Strangely, the parkgoers do not seem to notice the shadowy figures that seem to be phasing in through the earth, continuing to eat, talk and laugh as if nothing out of the ordinary is going on. William stares grimly at the two figures, stating what Balmund likely already knows; "They've already found us. Quick, Duke, call out your Pokemon! There's only two right now... If we can take 'em out quick, we can jump on Salamence and fly to the station before more show up! C'MON OUT, AVERIL!"

William quickly pulls off the only Pokeball on his belt, and activates the device in order to unleash the form of a particularly tough-looking Haxorus. Averil growls menacingly at the shadows, which are now taking on the form of two Dusknoir. While the parkgoers don't seem to notice the Dusknoir, they definitely notice William's Haxorus, and seem confused at William's incredibly defensive stance. The strange thing about these particular Dusknoir, however, is that their eyes and markings are a strange, glowing blue, while the rest of their bodies seem entirely composed of transparent shadows... Perhaps these creatures are the minions of the God Dialga. Certainly, they look the part. The pair of Dusknoir advance, and William turns to Balmund, whispering to him frantically; "We need to figure out how to make this battle believable to these parkgoers, or they're gonna call the cops on us. They can't see the Minions like we can..." In fact, some children are actually circling around Averil, mesmerized by the strange, yet powerful Pokemon. If Balmund doesn't think quickly, not only will he and William look like total nuts attacking nothing, but some bystanders may get hurt, as well. He'll need to think of a very convincing lie to get this battle going!

What will Balmund do?

Balmund's idea of flying straight to their final destination seemed to be of William's liking. If only it was suggested sooner... William points out to a pair of shadows emerging from the ground, materializing into what seemed like a pair of far from ordinary Dusknoir, considering Dusknoir are hardly ordinary as is. Oddly enough, they couldn't be seen by anyone other of the parkgoers, which was a troubling cpnsoderation. They didn't seem like oppoments one could just easily walk over, and having to concentrate on anything other than the battle ahead was going to put them at a great disadvantage. What possible excuse could he come up with to explain fighting opponents that weren't supposed to be there to begin with? Could he stage battle between himself and William and maneuver around that to combat the Dusknoir? Possibly, but that would present a lot of maneuvering issues and could ultimately spell disaster. Will's mighty Haxorus certainly looked strong, but how good a team player was she? He would have to put his trust on her and see what happens. But wait a second, they don't necessarily have to stage a Pokémon battle.... perhaps there was an easier way...

Throwing his Pokéball high into the air, the ball burst with light as a majestic Salamence emerges from it. The Dragon type is instantly alarmed by the two Dusknoir, and one look at Balmund was all it took to understand his role right now. "Oh yeah? Well I'll show why my Salamence is the Coolest out there. Your dragon ain't got nuthin' on mine!" He exclaimed to William, though to ensure surrounding passerby could hear him. "Everybody clear out! This os going to be a move demonstration for the ages! Durandal, Focus Energy before wowing everyone with you Air Cutter, then heat things up with a dazzling Heat Wave."

It was this or nothing. It was time to roll dice and cross fingers.

Last edited by Balmund; 30th July 2012 at 6:34 PM.
Reason: adding signature